Aurea Mors: Reforged
by Patriot-112
Summary: They would never accept me. I know they won't, because I wasn't naturally born a human. That man who created me may be a douche, but he speaks the truth. I'm nothing but a copy... nothing more. Rewrite of my original Aurea Mors, due to...obvious reasons
1. Prologue: Maiden Knight

**_Patriot-112 : Well, here it is, my rewrite of Aurea Mors, which I intended to have a slight Fate series influence, but was instead fucked up by Ron the True Fan, who I'm a little annoyed with at the moment. I hope this works out better, since I'm recycling what I have from the original fic, and adding my own stuff, so I make it more my own. Now, enough with that, here we go!_**

* * *

 _ **Prologue:**_

 _ **The Maiden Knight**_

* * *

" _You understand what you have to do?"_

 _"Yes, Lady Blaze,"_

 _"Repeat it to me,"_

 _"Dismantle the White Fang, piece by piece. Eliminate any Grimm that I see. Protect the individuals under the designations RWBY and JNPR. Eliminate the following individuals: Adam Taurus, Mercury Black, Emerald Sustrai, Cinder Fall, and finally, the Grimm Queen Salem,"_

 _"What are you to do, when seen?"_

 _"Evade capture as much as possible,"_

 _"What are you to do when cornered?,"_

 _"Fight back 'til I'm free,"_

 _"What will you do when captured?"_

 _"...End it, if no avenue of escape is available,"_

 _"...And what will you do, when all objectives are achieved?"_

 _"I...choose what I deem satisfactory"_

 _"You're taking a big step into a larger world child. You were well trained in the sword, your shield, and your semblance, but never let cockiness rule you. You will feel conflicted in your choices, but in the end, you will achieve victory...from this point on, until you die... you are Doré Arkos,"_

* * *

 _ **Docks of Vale**_

* * *

The shipping docks of Vale were quiet, as a large assortment of Dust containers of the Schnee Dust Company lie in wait for the trucks that would take them to a warehouse in downtown Vale. Normally, this much Dust would require a large amount of security guards to protect it from thieves...but for some odd reason, there were no signs of any guards of the SDC anywhere, nor any Atlas soldiers, or any local dock watchmen.

This was noted by an individual, who was watching from the roof of a warehouse. It was a woman by the shape of their figure, clad in what looked to be to a dark yellow combat dress, with red trim, with a steel breastplate, gauntlets that covered the entire forearm, and, under the hem of the dress, armored plated boots with a slightly raised heel.

The physical features that could be seen, where her pale white skin, and golden blonde, red streaked, hair which was secured into a lace braid sock bun, tied off by a red ribbon. Her face on the other hand, was half hidden, with only from her mouth down being seen, while the rest was obscured by a visor style mask, which was colored red with gold vine plant designs, which did well to hide her eyes.

Another thing to note, were the weapons she was carrying. On her back, was a bronze plated round shield which at one part, had the noticeable end of a gun barrel, while at her side, was a classical long sword, which was well crafted, and looked sharp enough to cut through the toughest metal or stone.

The eyes of the masked woman narrowed as she looked at the shipping dock.

"You'd think the SDC would have, at least, a few dozen guards protecting their most valuable product," she said, while sighing in exasperation, "My expectations of the Schnee family are starting to deteriorate further, rather rapidly."

" **It is likely a 50 percent possibility that A. the SDC is extremely incompetent when it comes to their security,** " Said a computerized monotone voice, " **Or B. someone in the higher echelons of the company is bribing the guards not to be here tonight."**

"Or both," said the woman, just as she heard the sound of jet engines overhead and spotted a Bullhead VTOL flying about the docks before it descended and landed on the clear space of the dock. The woman's mouth curled slightly into a smirk "And right on time. Just as Lady Blaze said...,"

" **Are you...alright**?" the voice said worriedly at the woman's depressed tone.

"I'll be fine," The woman said, "Let's get on with it, shall we? Wouldn't want to keep our guests waiting..."

* * *

Roman Torchwick.

Thief, crime boss, and egotistical ass, was leading one of his biggest heists yet, which was stealing containers of Dust owned by the infamous SDC, from the Vale shipping docks. He was told by his contact that the containers will be out in the open, and unguarded, thanks to a little...persuasion on their part.

Of course, they could've of least given him better help than these supremacist morons from the White Fang. Sure, they had senses any Human would kill to have, since the White Fang are entirely made up of the Faunus race, but they were just so. DAMN. DUMB!

 _'Sigh, why the heck did that chick give me these animals to use for this job_?' he thought to himself, after he just berated a White Fang member with a tow cable, who can't tell the difference between his ass and head. However his thoughts were interrupted as a blade was placed dangerously close to his throat.

"What the!? Oh, for the love of-"

"Don't move!" ordered the person, a young woman wearing a gothic style outfit with some inklings of a ninja. Her hair was long and black as night, yellow cat like eyes, and was wearing a black bow at the top of her head.

"Whoa, easy there little lady," said Torchwick, just as the White Fang noticed the unexpected guest as readied their weapons. The young girl then untied the bow, and removed it, revealing a pair of cat ears that showed she was a faunus, which surprised the other Faunus.

"Brothers of the White Fang!" Blake Belladonna shouted for everyone of her fellow Faunus to hear, "Why are you aiding this scum?"

As the Faunus became slightly hesitant, a new voice was heard.

"They're aiding him, because they have no choice."

( **BGM: The Battle is to the Strong - Fate/Zero OST** )

Everyone turned to the source of the voice, and on top of a shipping container, and with the shattered moon of Remnant behind her, was the woman. The illumination from the moonlight, made the sight of her appear to be like she was a completely different being.

"Unfortunately, that doesn't excuse them of the other crimes they committed," she finished as she drew the blade in her left hand and slipped the shield onto her right arm. "And thus, must be punished,"

Roman's eyes along with the White Fang grunts all widened at the newcomer. This didn't go unnoticed by Blake.

"Oh, come on!" the crime lord shouted, " _You_ again!?"

The woman's mouth curled into a smirk at the man's outburst.

"If I can't mess up your current boss' big plan for this city, who will?" she said, making Blake blink at that, while Roman's eyes widened even further.

"Wait, wha...!?"

"That's for me to know, and for you to never know," the armored woman said, just as the sound of more Bullhead VTOLs were heard as they flew over the dockyard. "Now then..."

With that, she threw her shield arm around, launching the metal disc like a missile which hit the jet engine of one VTOL, but then the shield suddenly came back around like a boomerang, and took out the other engine, causing the aircraft to crash to the ground. The woman grabbed the shield with her left hand and placed it back on her arm.

Everyone's eyes widened at that, including Blake's, until Roman used Melodic Cudgel to blast the ground in front of the cat Faunus, sending her flying, and then turned to the Grunts.

"Well, what are you waiting for!?" he shouted while pointing at the woman who destroyed the Bullhead, "Kill her!"

The White Fang wasted no time as they either shot at the woman or charged at her with their swords. The woman jumped from the top of the container, her shield, emblazoned with a crescent moon and spear, blocking the dust bullets being fired at her, and landed on the ground before charging at the grunts.

"HAAAAHHHH!"

With a quick swipe of her longsword as she cleaved one Faunus' head off in one sweep, before nimbly dodging another attack and stabbing another in the gut. She kicked the corpse off her blade, before jumping and cork screwing over a attempted stab from another, before she delivered a strong kick to his head.

After landing on the ground, she heard the sounds of guns cocking and turned to a group of White Fang who all aimed their guns at her. But then she threw her shield at them, the round disc hitting them all in the head, while bouncing off them like a pinball machine, knocking them out, and then it returned to her like a boomerang.

Watching this from a lamp post, a blonde haired monkey Faunus could only look on in astonishment.

"Whoa! Okay, that's badass!" Sun shouted, as he joined the fray, as he used his signature bo-staff/nunchaku/shotgun weapon to fight Torchwick.

"Oh, fucking Oum, why won't you piss off!" Torchwick, contrary to popular belief, was actually once a huntsman. Of course, that was decades ago, when he wasn't jaded and decided crime paid better.

He was beginning to think that was a very bad idea, as while he was holding the two off, they were getting VERY close to taking his head off.

 _Both_ of them.

He's just glad the mysterious knight lady is busy dealing with the White Fang, to focus on him at the moment. However, that didn't mean he was scared of her.

Eventually, he got away before he heard a familiar voice. "HEY!"

"Goddamn it, not _her_." Torchwick groaned out.

He looked to a rooftop, finding Little Red there, scythe rifle in hand, red hooded cloak flapping as she spun the weapon around before the blade hit the rooftop.

"Oh, hey Red! Isn't it past your-SON OF A BITCH!" Blake's sheath nearly took off the man's head, forcing him to duck.

"Pay attention to me, scum!" the Cat Faunus shouted as she used Gambol Shroud's pistol form to fire a barrage of dust rounds at the thief.

"If that blade had connected, I would've been VERY upset!" Roman growled, because let's face it, NO MAN wants their junk cut off. However his attention then went back to the woman who was just finishing up the last of his help.

The White Fang idiots finally fell to the ground, some dead, others simply humiliated by the Maiden Knight.

VERY humiliated.

"Killing you is optional. But I don't see any reason not to." The knight said as she made her approach, causing alarms to go off in Roman's brain like warning sirens.

A rather distinct sound that signaled fear and an urge to RUN THE FUCK AWAY. So he did, to one of the only remaining Bullhead VTOLs. All the while, a certain copper haired girl was destroying the other two Bullheads he brought along, via a green laser beam of DOOM.

"Okay, these kids are just getting weirder and WEIRDER! Plus more scary..." he said as he closed the hatch and the transport took off.

The woman seeing the thief take off, now decided it was time to leave.

Torchwick was an annoyance at best. Killing him wouldn't change anything, and he was more useful afraid.

After all, she had her mission, and him interfering with Teams RWBY and...JNPR...would cause more problems than she needed. So, after securing her weapons, she proceeded to run to the edge of the dock and jumped into the water, swimming the hell away.

Thank Oum her armor is made up of a lightweight, and water proofed alloy.

* * *

" _I don't care what you're offering me. I will not give you shit."_

 _"I need you to help me because we now share a common enemy..."_

 _"Oh, you mean to tell me your Grimm Queen Bitch finally turned on you. Well boo hoo for you, that's what you get working with people with a devil/doomsday complex."_

 _"What I have planned will be beneficial for both of us!"_

 _"And what exactly do you want? I'm not in a position to give anything."_

 _"I know what you can do. All you need is blood, or a hair sample. Anything containing DNA."_

 _"I'll still need a second donor. A clone wouldn't live past its' birth having only 80% of its' genes."_

 _"I have a pair in mind. This will work and everything I've caused will be undone."_

 _"You're serious. Fine. But once this is done, I will kill you for all the shit you've caused,"_

 _"I can do that."_

* * *

 _"Are these my...?"_

 _"Yes... these are your parents, my dear girl,"_

 _"And...you're saying that they're..."_

 _"They've been dead for years. Your mother died a martyr, even though she didn't have to, while your father died in a quest to avenge her,"_

 _"...would they...would they have loved me? Even though I'm..."_

 _"Perhaps. I didn't know them personally."_

 _"Stop filling her head with fairy tales. She's a binary clone that you ordered me to create. I'm surprised you're actually getting attached, cunt that you are."_

 _"She needs to know who and where she comes from! She may be a clone, but that doesn't change the fact she's still human!"_

 _"Even though you were the one that- AHH!"_

 _"If you even DARE finish that sentence...!"_

 _"You...still...need me...you fucking whore..."_

 _"GAH! Be lucky you still are needed, you fucking mad scientist!"_

 _"Luck? No. Necessity. You need me to make sure she reaches maturity without deforming, while you train her,"_

 _"I know that... But she will still have her humanity intact."_

 _"Whatever you say. But let me ask you something. Why didn't you just leave?"_

 _"What?"_

 _"Why didn't you just leave when you got what you wanted at Beacon? You injured that girl so she wouldn't chase after you again, you didn't have to shoot her in the fucking chest and then burn her body to ash. But you did it anyway."_

 _"I was a fool...I was too stupid and blind to think, only reveling in my new-found power."_

 _"...You deserve to die, and once this is over...you will."_

 _"I won't make it easy for you."_

 _"Nothing ventured. Nothing gained,"_

* * *

She coughed as she got out of the water. Her armored dress was soaked, and heavy, as she pulled herself out onto the pier, far away from the SDC dock that was now crawling with VPD.

"Damn cops are slow," the woman growled out, "What good are they if they're too lazy to get here in time."

 **"The police during this time of 'peace' are too complacent to take their duty to the people seriously,"** said the voice, " **But w** **e must leave the docks at once, before we are discovered, and return to the hideout."**

The blonde-red haired woman nodded and proceeded to move away from the area, sticking to the shadows to avoid detection.

* * *

Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy, was watching the camera feeds on his scroll of the recent heist by Roman Torchwick. His main focus on the mysterious masked woman, called the Maiden Knight, who had been making quite a vigilante reputation in the city, and dealing damage to White Fang Cells all over Remnant.

Of course, the Atlas Military and all the Kingdoms' Councils had placed her on a wanted list, due to her interfering in police work, and vigilantism. But, many people, including some police, actually sided with her, and were against the charges against her. Ozpin could understand them, but he also understood that the White Fang will no doubt target her in retaliation.

He watched as she dove into the water as soon as the other surviving VTOLs of the White Fang, along with Torchwick fled. Then the camera changed to another pier as the said masked Huntress got out of the water. After looking back at the SDC dock, she turned and left the area.

 _'Who are you exactly, my dear?,'_ thought the old professor with curiosity, before his personal scroll beeped, signaling he had a message.

Opening the text message screen, he saw it was from his best field agent, Qrow, the uncle of Team RWBY's Ruby Rose, and Yang Xiao Long.

He opened the inbox and saw the message text that caused his eyes to squint.

 _Queen has Pawns_.

"Hmm," was his response as he rubbed his chin, concerned thoughts on his mind.

He then typed a message to send back to Qrow.

 _New player has appeared, return to Vale as soon as you can for more details_.

He pressed the 'send' button, and placed the scroll back on his desk. The Vytal Festival is approaching, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding that something might happen.

* * *

 _ **One Hour after failed Heist**_.

* * *

Roman walked into the abandoned warehouse, grumbling after the colossal failure to steal the SDC Dust shipment at the docks. And it was all thanks to a bunch of brats, and that damned masked woman, who was making quite a vigilante-esque reputation as the Maiden Knight. It all started just shortly a week after he met Cinder. And every time he, and whoever was with him, went out to steal Dust, that bitch appeared and ruined it, making his success streak suffer terribly.

And this biggest possible score was yet another disaster added to the list.

He sighed as he put the Dust crystal case on the wooden table in front of him, and placed Melodic Cudgel next to it.

"Man, what a night," he said, grudgingly, "Another score ruined by that blonde haired masked bitch,"

"Trouble on the job, Roman?," a seductive voice said, causing Roman to jump.

"WHOA!" he shouted as he quickly turned around and spotted the woman who hired him to steal as much Dust as possible, "H-Hey there Cinder, was not expecting to see you this evening."

"That was the point." Cinder Fall said, the seductive smirk still on her face, "And what did you mean by 'blonde haired bitch'?"

Roman rolled his eyes at that, sighing annoyingly, "Remember that one masked vigilante I told you about that's been causing a little bit of trouble for us?" he said, and Cinder nodded.

"Yes," she said, "Let me guess, she struck again?,"

"Bingo," Roman said, "And those White Fang grunts you lent me, they got their collective asses creamed. And she showed me that she's not scared of shedding a little blood."

Cinder blinked at that, "They're dead?"

"Or wishing they were!" Roman shouted, "If I were any slower, I'd be a stain on the ground! Hell, YOU'D be a stain on the ground!"

The Fallen Maiden's eyes narrowed at that, "Really?" she said.

"Damn right! I witnessed the whole beat down right in front of me," the thief said, "But let me tell you something about that girl: She is NOT to be messed with! She may look like a Huntress, but that kind of brutality is something entirely."

Cinder hummed in thought at that, as she turned to the shadows.

"Emerald, add this masked woman to the list." she ordered, "If she is as Roman claims, she could prove quite the handful,"

"If you want a face..." Roman as he brought out his scroll, "...I got a photo of her, though like I said, she's wearing a mask."

Cinder looked at the image. Blonde hair, with red streaks, tied up in a bun, an...odd battledress, a sword and shield, the latter of which included a built-in SMG from the looks of it.

She also noticed the mask not only hid her identity, but also her eyes, and since she couldn't see her eyes, she will not be able to tell what type of person they were, for the eyes were the gateway to the soul of a person. A trait only a few share with her, including her mistress, and Ozpin... smart girl.

"She doesn't look that tough," she heard the grey haired assassin said, only to receive a smack to the head courtesy of Emerald. "What!?"

"She just killed a whole bunch of White Fang with no problem, and you're NOW gonna underestimate her?" Emerald said, her deadpanned tone clearly a sign she was not amused. Mercury looked like he was about to argue, but Cinder immediately put a stop to it.

"Stop your bickering!" she snapped, "We will deal with this Maiden Knight, but not on her terms. Until then, I want you two to keep a low profile for the time being and not get your hands dirty. Is that understood?"

Her amber eyes glowed in anger and the two cohorts both winced that. They hesitantly nodded, not wanting to incur her wrath. Cinder took that as a yes, and nodded.

"I also managed to get the recordings from the Dock's CCTV cameras." Roman said, "Through hacking of course. It will help you find a way to counter our little vigilante problem."

Cinder nodded at that, a grin on her face. "Of course." she said, and then pressed the play button.

The footage began to play, showing the entire battle and how the Maiden Knight fought. They then caught sight of the girl, though her back was to the cameras as she climbed out of the water, after swimming in freakin' armor.

"Hmm, very interesting," she said, "Clearly not someone to sniff at. Especially how she used her shield to destroy a Bullhead. Still she's a problem that needs to dealt with, and soon,"

"We'll be able to get her out of our hair," said Mercury assuredly, "But, from what we saw, she's damn good with that sword of hers. We need someone who's equally, or more skilled,"

The Fallen Maiden tapped her chin in thought for a moment before a smirk formed.

"Call in Adam." Cinder ordered, "I'm sure he'll be happy to get a shot on the one who has been killing his people off lately. However, tell him that I want her captured alive if possible"

Adam Taurus, the leader of the White Fang after it's previous leader stood down five years ago, and who what made the once peaceful organization what it was today. The Bull Faunus was proud of his Faunus heritage, to the point of murdering any fellow Faunus who didn't want to be a part of White Fang's ideals.

Of course, she had a little hope that the Bull Faunus will kill this Masked Maiden, due to his superb mastery of his sword Wilt. In the meantime though, she decided she will watch how this girl fought, and study everything about her. If she ran out of research material, she would either bust a few knees, or just do a stealth mission to find out more.

"Oh, and before I forget," Roman suddenly pointed out, "When she announced her presence, she stated, and in her own words: 'If I don't mess with your current boss' plan for Vale, then who will?'"

Cinder's eyes widened at that, and snapped her head back to the thief.

"She said that?" she said, and Roman.

"With full confidence," he said, "It's possible we have a rat in our midst."

That made Cinder burn with anger, a traitor in their group could put the entire plan into jeopardy. She knew Emerald and Mercury would never betray her, they were scared of her too much. Thus, they need to find out who it is, and deal with it. But for now, she had a vigilante to study.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, White Fang Base**_

* * *

"WHAT!? _HER_ AGAIN!?" shouted one Adam Taurus as he just received the news of the failure of the SDC heist at the docks, and the loss of over half of the White Fang who went on that operation.

"Yes sir, it was that vigilante known as the Maiden Knight," said one Faunus, who had a full face mask, and had a chainsaw on his back.

"That bitch is almost as bad as that traitor Belladonna!" Growled another Faunus, named Perry, who had a pair of glasses over his mask.

"At least we have more information this time." said a female Faunus, with a pair of calico cat ears, "Torchwick survived, barely, but we have managed to find out she's in Vale,"

Adam growled as his grip on his sword tightened.

"Torchwick even managed to get some video for us, as well," said Mr. Chainsaw, "We'll be able to study how she moves, and find a way to counter her. Of course... Cinder wants to capture her alive if possible,"

Adam growled at the mention of that flame woman's name. She claimed that she could give his people the means, including Dust, weapons, and funds, but thanks to that damn Maiden Knight, it was looking like she was bringing them into the crosshairs to be massacred instead.

"Anything else?" He said, already on a short fuse. The glasses wearing faunus stepped forward.

"We've been hearing rumors from the other cells around Remnant." Perry said, "Apparently, the Wolfwatch is beginning to spring up again."

Adam snapped his head toward Perry at that.

"How is that possible!?" he yelled out, "The Wolfwatch's back was broken when the Atlas military destroyed their main base on Citadel Island!"

"Apparently it's possible that what they destroyed was just a small contingent." Perry clarified, "Of course, if we need to find out we have to capture one of them."

Adam sighed at that.

"Right... this meeting is adjourned. Back to your assigned positions," he said, and the other Faunus nodded as they leave the tent, leaving the Bull Faunus alone, as he looked at the footage that Torchwick sent them, his eyes behind his mask glaring at the image of the Masked Knight.

"When I get the chance, I'll run you through with Wilt, and watch with a smile as the life leaves your eyes, and your body goes limp," He growled out, his hand clenching before turning to a photo, of another certain Cat Faunus his masked facial features softening slightly. "My beloved Blake. Why did you do it? Why did you leave like that?"

His hand reached forward as he caressed the face of the girl on the picture. "We were going to bring a new era to Remnant, you and I... but then you left me," his hand then clenched into a fist before he slammed it into a file cabinet, "Make no mistake, my dear Blake. I will find you, and I will make you mine again, but not before I make you suffer by making you watch as I kill all of those you love around you... starting with your new _friends_ ,"

* * *

 _"Lady Blaze?"_

 _"Before you go Doré, I have one more thing to give you,"_

 _"Th...This is...,"_

 _"It was your mother's. I have no doubt that she would've wanted you to have it."_

 _"Thank... Thank you,"_

 _"Listen to me. No matter what that foolish old man says, clone or not, you're still a human, and Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos are your parents. Do you want to know why I gave you the surname Arkos?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"Because it is their names. Arc and Nikos combined. You are their child. Do not forget this."_

 _"I won't. But-"_

 _"Tune him out. He's a bitter old man because I denied him his greatest wish."_

 _"..."_

 _"You'll find out in due time. Also, remember what I said about the powers."_

 _"They're to be used wisely, and to be used in the dire of circumstances,"_

 _"Yes...good luck my dear. And remember..."_

 _"The Aura is with me,"_

* * *

A small light switched on, and a sigh was heard as the masked woman walked into the room of a building that served as her headquarters. That being the Vale Royal Palace, home of the Monarchy that used to rule the Kingdom of Vale, until the Age of Revolutions took place, and the kingdoms were now ruled by the oligarchical councils. In a sense, the city-states were kingdoms without kings.

The woman reached the bed before she exhaustedly sat down and removed her mask, revealing a pair of brilliant emerald eyes. They showed the tiredness, pain, determination, and loneliness she felt.

Looking to the side, her eyes and face took a more solemn as she reached over and grabbed something off a small table.

It was a circlet, one of the few precious things that Lady Blaze had ever given her. It was made of bronze, with two emeralds connected to two inlay chains that would loop around the ears.

This item was specifically special to her, because of who it originally belonged to... One of two people who she so desired to meet with all her heart, but couldn't due to the circumstances of her birth.

She knew she would never be accepted by them. The Scientist who created her may've been an asshole, but he spoke the truth. They will never see her as a human being...But, she'll be damned if she let them suffered the way they did. She WAS going to stop that bitch from ruining their lives, and she was going to do it, even if she died doing it. No matter what.

She caressed the circlet carefully before gently putting back on the table. She then stood up as she began to remove her armor and battle dress, but left her hair in it's bun. When she was just in her underclothes, she pulled the covers of the bed back, climbed in and went to sleep, however, her dreams will be plagued by visions of a future soon to come, a future she was determined to prevent.

* * *

 _ **Patriot-112: And there we have it! The first chapter of my rewrite of Aurea Mors. Done the RIGHT way! Of course, I did take some things that were salvageable, including SOME good stuff Ron put in here so give him credit for that, and put it here, but there WILL be significant changes overall. Also, I didn't say this in the original, but the A.I. is, personality wise, based on Delta, the A.I. fragment of Alpha from RvB.**_

 _ **Now, the character profile:**_

* * *

 **Name** : Doré Arkos

 **Age** : 17

 **Gender** : Female

 **Race** : Human (Clone)

 **Eye Color** : Emerald green

 **Hair Color/style** : Blonde with red highlights/mid back length/braided bun

 **Build** : Athletic/Toned

 **Semblance** : Polarity

 **Birth Year** : 13 years after the Fall of Beacon

 **Also Known as** : The Golden Rogue; The Maiden Knight

 **Personality** : Calm and Collected, is hesitant in making friends. Suffers from internal grief due to the belief that she is just a mere clone of Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos, and will never be seen as their daughter.

 **Weapon** : Aurea Mors (Sword and Shield SMG combo, former based on Caliburn, while shield is based on Akouo but with Doré's personal emblem carved on the face.)

 **Bio** : Born 13 years after the Fall of Beacon, and three years after the end of the Salem War, Doré Arkos is the clone daughter of the late Huntsman and Huntress partners: Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos. She was raised by a reformed Cinder Fall, who under a different name, and wearing a mask, trained her extensively since she was seven to kill her past self, and her former mistress Salem, who had betrayed her. She is sent back to the past, however she has difficulty accepting who, or what she is, believing herself to be an abomination. And thus, she believes, her death will make them happy.

 **Appearance** : Maiden Alter Ego: Saber from Fate/Zero, blue part of outfit is colored dark yellow with red trim, wears a Saber Alter style mask to hide half of her face, and eyes. Unmasked: Looks like a blonde haired Pyrrha.

* * *

 _ **Patriot-112 : And there, for those of you who are new to this. Until next time, later!**_


	2. Chapter 1: Lost Soul

_**Patriot-112: Hey everyone! And let me explain that I am VERY happy that everyone received the news as well they did. I told Ron the news about him no longer working on future RWBY fics I think for myself, but I'll still work with him on his and my current fics, and he...took it rather well.**_

 _ **Or in his words: 'I just don't fucking care'**_

 _ **...Well, anyway, I am pleased to say that AM:Reforged has received positives, other than the original. But, like I said in the Author's Notice I left, that fic hasn't been discontinued. Yes, I know I screwed up in that fic. But if you help me make THIS fic you're reading better than the original, I wouldn't mind ideas. Now, let's continue.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter One:**_

 _ **Lost Soul**_

* * *

 _ **City of Vale**_

 _ **Tukson's Book Trade**_

 _ **Two weeks after SDC Dust heist attempt**_

* * *

The door to Tukson's Book Trade store opened as a blonde haired woman, wearing a pair of form fitting jeans, low heeled lace up boots, a white tank top, and a opened brown leather jacket walked in. Her eyes were covered with a pair of sunglasses as she carried a stack of three books under her arm. She walked passed all of the small shelves of books as she stood at the front counter and rang the bell.

"Be right there!" a voice shouted in the back room, and soon a well muscular man came out, a large stack of books in his arms. He was taller than about three inches passed six feet, and had crew cut black hair, with sideburns.

"Welcome to Tukson's Book Trade! Home to every book under the sun!" the man boasted as she set the stack down and turned to the woman at the counter, and he blinked, "Doré? It's been weeks since I last saw you!"

The woman, Doré, gave a soft smile as she removed her glasses, revealing her emerald eyes.

"Hey Tukson. Sorry, I was held up by family business," she said apologetically, "I thought I catch you so I can drop some books off before you move to Vacuo,"

With that she placed the stack on the counter as Tukson gave her a small wave.

"It's fine, it's fine! No need to worry about that," he said, calming her worries, "Let's see what you got,"

With that, Tukson began looking at the books that Doré brought him, including a small red book with gold lettering. It was titled: 'A Blue Dove for the Princess'.

"Heh, I remember this old story," Tukson said smiling nostalgically, as he picked up the book and looked through the pages, "My mom would read it to me and my sister when we were kids,"

"It's still popular these days," Doré said, "This is one of two hardback books I currently own. Since I already have one, I thought this one will make a good addition to your store once you set up shop in Vacuo."

Tukson nodded as he closed the book, "Hang here for a minute," he said and went into the back, while Doré waited for him to come back. As she did, she looked around and sighed sadly. She was going to miss Tukson, she and him had a mutual love for books. History, kids stories, science fiction, romance novels, it didn't matter to her, if it was a good read, she had to have it.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Tukson came back, and laid what looked like a large case on the table in front of her.

"This stuff wasn't easy to get, ya know," he said, as Doré opened it and looked inside, "Those security doors nearly got me, but knowing Atlas hardware, it's getting more predictable,"

Doré gave the contents a critical eye before she closed the case, and gave the bookshop owner a grateful smile.

"Thank you Tukson," she said, "I'll be sure to repay you anyway I can,"

The man just shook his head, "There's no need, Doré. You're a good kid, and have been helping me out a lot. Consider this a gift in helping out a guy like me," he said, which caused Doré to smile and gave the man a friendly embrace. After a moment, the two broke apart.

"Call me when you reach Vacuo, alright?" she said, "I wanna know you're safe,"

Tukson nodded, "I'll call you when my plane lands," he said, and Doré nodded as she picked up the case and left the store.

However, she didn't notice the two people who entered just eight seconds after she left. One of them however, spotted her, and her eyes squinted.

"What's up, Emerald?" said Mercury, while Emerald watched the girl leave with a large case, more specifically, at her hair. However, the girl entered a crowd of people and disappeared, causing her to shake her head

"...Nothing." the illusionist said, and the two walked into the store.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, at Beacon.**_

 _ **Ozpin's Office**_

* * *

Ozpin looked out the window, overlooking Beacon's courtyard, and giving a grand view of the bay, between Beacon and the City of Vale. It had been at least two weeks since the incident at the docks. And two weeks since the last sighting of the Maiden Knight. Now, he wasn't obsessed or anything like that. He was just curious in what and who the woman was.

Who trained her, what are her motives, and why does she do what she does.

"Whenever I see you with that expression," said a gruff, with a slight tinge of drunkenness, "It means that you're thinking about something really hard. And whatever it is you're thinking, it's either very good, or it's very bad."

Ozpin sighed at that and looked behind him to see none other than Qrow Branwen. Member of Team STRQ at Beacon, and one of the best Hunters he trained. He hadn't changed much, sans, the light stubble on his face, and the graying black hair.

"Good of you to come, Qrow," Ozpin said, "I wouldn't have called you here if it wasn't important."

The said man shrugged as he brought out a flask.

"This wouldn't happened to be about a certain masked female vigilante wearing an armored battle dress, and giving criminal elements, including the White Fang a REALLY hard time?" He asked, making the Headmaster blink, before sighing.

"Nothing gets passed you Qrow," he said, "Yes, it concerns the Maiden Knight. You know the Councils of all the kingdoms want to apprehend her due to her actions in dealing with the Criminal Underworld?"

Qrow nodded at that, knowing how the political idiots are mostly doing it out of their pride being hurt. Of course, there is the problem of the people raising a stink over it, considering they see her as a Heroine from a bygone age come back to deliver true justice.

"Politics and all that good shit." Qrow grumbled out, "They should give her a medal, instead of slapping cuffs on her,"

Ozpin nodded whimsically at that, "True, but unfortunately, they're the ones who make the rules. However, I spoke to them last week, giving them a deal and asking that I form a team to search for her, and that once I find her, I will induct her into Beacon Academy. But if the police and the Atlas Military find her first, they will arrest her and prosecute her." he explained, and Qrow quirked an eyebrow.

"So, who are you gonna pick for this search and recruit mission?" he asked, and Ozpin sighed.

"Normally I would pick just you, and, since you're still in contact with her, your sister," the Headmaster said, which he received a look from the man that said 'Don't'. "However, I thought of assembling two of the top Hunter-in-training Teams currently in Academical circulation."

Qrow blinked twice at that.

"Isn't that a little risky, even for you Oz?" he said, and he watched his old friend activate the holotable to show the image of the said woman.

"Believe, I wouldn't want to get any of the students hurt, or possibly worse, considering who it is they will be facing," Ozpin said, as he looked at the image of the woman. "But, call it an instinct, but when I watch her fight, I could see someone who is determined to succeed, but I can also see her pain, and solitude. A person who is crying out for companionship. Call it crazy old man talk if you want, but that's just how I feel."

Qrow looked at the Headmaster before he gave a sigh, "So, who're the lucky winners that are going after her then?"

* * *

"I love these guys," said a certain blonde haired Monkey Faunus as he watched his new friends just finish the mother of all food fights he had ever seen. His friend, on the hand, covered in grape juice, just gives him a glare. The doors slam open as a blonde haired woman entered, her expression that of stress, and anger, as she growled at the state of the dining hall. She raised her riding crop and in a flash all the tables and benches went back to their rightful places and the food was placed back into trash bins.

"Children, please!" she said sternly, "Do not play with your food!"

Said children were none other than the Freshman Teams of Beacon, Team RWBY and Team JNPR.

The teens were all covered in the food they threw or bashed against each other. Of course, Team JNPR was mostly covered in food, while Team RWBY was more clean.

"BURP!" Everyone looked to Nora who shamelessly belched, before a scream got their attention, as Yang Xiao Long crashed through the roof after being sent into the air by said Valkyrie. The students begin to laugh, while Glynda wasn't amused, until she felt a familiar hand on her shoulder.

"Let it go," said Ozpin gently, as he came down after hearing the commotion.

The deputy headmistress sighed as she turned to the two teams.

"They're supposed to be the future protectors of the world," she said, as the gathered teens all laughed at the fun they just had.

"True, but they're still just children," Ozpin reminded, "So let's them continue to be that way while they still can. Afterall, it's not a privilege they'll have forever,"

He then turned to the students who took notice of his presence.

"I hope you had fun," Ozpin said, while a small frown formed on his face, "Though I believe the chefs will be most... _displeased_ at such a large waste of food."

The student teams all chuckled sheepishly at that, as the headmaster continued.

"But for now, I would like to see you both in my office, after you have cleaned up. For I have a special assignment for you all,"

That caused Glynda and the two teams to blink in confusion, but the latter nodded.

"Yes, Professor Ozpin," said Ruby, and the Headmaster nodded as he turned around and headed back to the office.

* * *

 _ **Vale Council Building, Meeting Room**_

* * *

The Council of Vale composes of five councilors who make all the political decisions in of the entire kingdom. Right now, they were in a discussion with the other Councils of the other kingdoms of Remnant, concerning a certain vigilante who has been making their respective police forces look like fools, and taking the law into her own hands. It was made even more frustrating that Ozpin made that offer to get her off the streets, but at the insistence of inducting her into Beacon.

They accepted of course, but did so begrudgingly, and it showed in their postures and expressions.

"That Ozpin has always been too nosy for his own good," said one councilor, one Nyanza Stone, the councilor for Vale's economy. The man was entering his late forties, with his hair being the color his name comes from, while having a pair of stone grey eyes. "He wants to give that damn vigilante a safe haven, where we won't be able to touch her."

"He apparently see potential in the girl," said a female councilor, from Mistral, "Why he thinks that, we'll never know. The most important thing is to apprehend her before he does."

"Easier said than done," said another Councilor, this one from Atlas, "This 'Maiden Knight' is clearly not only skilled at combat, but also an expert in evading law enforcement authorities. She makes our respective police forces look like a joke!"

"Then we need someone who is good at hunting the Hunters," Everyone turned to the Vale Councilor that spoke, one Cedric Greene, a recent addition to the Council of Vale, and a former Huntsman, with ten years of experience, but left the profession due to...differing views.

"And by that..," he continued, "...I propose we hire the services of the Imperial Military of Drache, since unlike Ozpin, they see things in a much wider perspective,"

The whole room went silent at that, as the man's words processed into their brains. Everyone knew who the Imperial Military of Drache were. Remnants of a Kingdom on the Continent of Drache, Northeast of Sunnus. Now, they were more or less mercenaries for hire, with an unhealthy hatred for Hunters in general.

"Are you... sure that's a good idea, Cedric?" said a Mistral councilor with a slight nervous tone, "The IMD is notorious for it's bitter rivalry with the Hunters' Guilds. And with the Vytal Festival approaching soon..."

Cedric turned to the man with a emotionless look on his face. "We can't just send another Huntsman or Huntress, to capture the MK, my follow councilor," he said, "While it's true that Hunters do help in arrests of other Hunters gone rogue, they take too long to apprehend them. Thus, it's more prudent to have the IMD track her down, since their track record of capturing rogue Huntsmen and Huntresses in a short time is exemplary. Plus, a little extra security wouldn't hurt much, infact that will be our cover story of why we requested them, since they, technically, are mercenaries."

The other councilors couldn't argue with that. After another full session of talking over the pros and cons of using the IMD, the choice was made.

"Very well then...all those in favor for hiring the Imperial Military of Drache for the capture of the Maiden Knight and providing security for the Vytal Festival?" The Head Councilor said and the whole room raise their hands, "And those opposed?"

Not a single hand rose up.

"Then it is approved," the man then turned to Cedric, "Since this is your idea, Greene, you will be the one who will make the call as well as tell the public of our decision."

Cedric nodded, as a small smirk adorned on his face, "Of course, sir,"

* * *

Half an hour later, after cleaning themselves up, and into their Hunter Gear, Team RWBY and Team JNPR arrived at the Headmaster's office, all of them curious about this assignment the old man was giving them.

"Thank you all for coming," Ozpin said, "I understand you're curious as to what is I wish to assign you with?"

Everyone gave a slight nod at that, which was the signal for Ozpin to proceed.

"Very well then," he said, "The assignment I'm giving you, is a search and retrieve mission for a specific person which some of you may or may not have heard about. Though, I should warn you, she is a very skilled, and an equally ruthless fighter."

He then took his scroll and placed it on the desk, before a hologram of the said person appeared. Someone who two certain ladies of Team RWBY knew instantly.

"Wait. Her!?" Ruby said in surprise, as everyone, sans Blake, turned to her. The said Cat Faunus was looking at the image of the same woman she saw at the docks with slightly narrowed eyes.

"Yes Miss Rose, this is the person who I want you all to find," Ozpin clarified, "Team RWBY and Team JNPR's first official joint mission is this: you are to locate the individual, known as the Maiden Knight, who has been causing quite the headache to the Criminal Underworld, corrupt politicians, and White Fang alike, and to convince her to come back with you. If failing at that, you are authorized to apprehend her, though WITHOUT causing great harm to her... and I meant that last part to you, Miss Xiao Long AND Miss Valkyrie,"

The said girls both groaned in disappointment at that, as the Headmaster continued.

"Now, I don't usually send just mere students to search for someone as skilled as this, which is why an experienced Huntsman is going with you, in order so that you won't get hurt in the process," he explained, and Pyrrha was the first to ask the question he was expecting.

"If I may ask, Headmaster...who is the Huntsman that is helping us with this mission?" she said, but her answer didn't come from Ozpin.

"That would be me,"

Everyone jumped at the voice and turned, which resulted in a happy squeal from Ruby, and a grin from Yang, as there stood their Uncle. Dusty drunk self as usual.

"Since I know only two of you, I'll introduce myself to the rest of ya," the Field Huntsman said, as he took a quick swig from his flask, "Name's Qrow Branwen, I've been working with Ozpin for years since my days as a student here at Beacon. Now before we go off on our little search for Miss Masked Warrior here, I only got one rule: Keep up with me, or I'll leave you behind...got it?"

The whole group of students nodded their heads as Ozpin took over again.

"Now, before you go on your assignment, I need to inform you that there is no deadline in how long you have to find the Maiden Knight." Ozpin briefed, "However, I must advise to complete this task as quickly as possible, for the longer this goes on, the greater the chances of her being arrested by the authorities, or worse, killed by criminal elements or the White Fang, increases. Is that understood?"

The two teams of students nodded their heads at that.

"Very good, your mission starts tomorrow morning. I suggest you get some rest, you'll need it. Dismissed"

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile..._**

 ** _Vale Royal Palace_**

* * *

Doré sighed as she placed the case on the table. It had been a long day today, as aside visiting Tukson, she went to the general store to restock her food supply, and getting a number of upgrades for her Scroll laptop. She was grateful that the Palace Complex had it's own power system, thanks to the solar panels installed, which accumulated power for a decade without anything being used in the place for years.

Mentally putting that aside, she then proceeded to place her food in the small refrigerator, before moving to the case on the table and opening the latches on it and opening it, revealing it's contents inside...which included an armored breastplate, with two gauntlets, with six spikes each on the forearms, all of it colored in a matte black finish. And finally, the coup de grace was a mask, just like her own. The young woman smiled as she looked at the armor, knowing what this type was...

...Nightshade Stealth Armor.

It was designed by Atlas military technicians, ten years ago as a stealth armor to be used by Black Ops units, using a system known as adaptive camouflage, which makes the wearer invisible to the naked eye. But unfortunately, the project was unwarrantedly scrapped by the Atlas Council, at the behest of the false Schnee, Jacques Gelee, all in his stupid assumption to save money when the said Kingdom had enough to make enough of these for an entire battalion, and thus sadly, the only one completed was the prototype. And now, what was Atlas' loss, was now her gain.

' _I need to make sure to cause a little more damage to that bastard's ego the next time I'm in Atlas_ ,' she thought to herself, before she closed the case, ' _I'll take you out on a test run tomorrow night_ ,'

She then proceeded to change out of her civilian attire into her night clothes, before she turned on the small television to catch up on the news. She then proceeded to bring out Aurea Mors, and a cleaning kit and went about maintaining her primary weapon, first by using a wet stone to sharpen the blade. All the while, Lisa Lavender, was reporting on the day's events, such as the preparations for the Vytal Festival, the increase in Dust thefts, SDC's CEO being a dick, and White Fang activity increasing, until...

" _...in other news, a robbery gone wrong in Downtown Vale has authorities looking for answers and the whereabouts of the perpetrators. The victim, Tukson of Tukson's Book Trade, was found dead in his shop at two forty five this afternoon...,_ "

Doré stopped what she was doing, snapping her head to the television, as the image of Tukson appeared, with the text under it saying, 'Store owner found murdered'.

" _... the cause of death, as stated by police investigators, is a single gunshot wound to the head, with no other injuries present. They had also determined it was a robbery gone wrong, due to the store's register and safe being completely empty of money. No suspects to the killing have been identified as of yet but police have urged the public to come forward with any information if possible..._ "

Doré blocked out the rest as she processed what she had just heard, until suddenly, a memory came back to her, how Lady Blaze told her of how two of Cinder's little underlings, Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black, had killed an informant in the White Fang before the Fall of Beacon. She then grasped her hair as she cursed to herself.

' _Dammit! If I had stayed there for a little longer, I could've saved him!_ '

Tukson was one of the few people who she managed to have at least a stable friendly relationship with. And now he was dead, killed by two of the people who had helped bring about a living hell to Remnant... and have ruined her life. She then removed her hand from her hair, as her emerald eyes glowed dangerously.

 _'I'm sorry Tukson..._ ,' she thought to herself, ' _... even though I didn't save you, the least I can do, is make the ones who killed you regret what they did. That, I promise,_ '

However, her ears then picked up what Lisa said next.

" _...as Vale Councilman Cedric Greene gave this announcement today about the growing concerns of the citizens and the success of the Vytal Festival Tournament:..._ "

". _..In response to the growing White Fang activity, as well as the increasing Dust robberies plaguing our city, and for safety concerns for the Vytal Festival this fall, the Council has unanimously agreed in hiring the Imperial Military of Drache to act as extra security alongside the forces that Atlas has so gratefully sent. And the IMD has humbly accepted, and have already began preparations to send a Task Force to Vale..._ "

As the reporters at the conference immediately went into a frenzy. With Doré, the moment she heard the words 'Imperial Military of Drache', images of a time she wished to forget came barreling back into her mind like a stampede of Grimm. Atlas troops was one thing she could avoid during the festival, but Drachan Troops are on a whole new other level... especially him.

Needless to say, Doré was beginning to panic, as a chill ran up her spine.

' _There's only one reason why Drache will be coming here...the Councils have called them in to capture_ me,' she thought, ' _The extra security thing is just a bonus, and no doubt they'll use this to undermine the Hunter Guilds_.'

She was sure of this, because Lady Blaze showed her the history of the events prior and after Beacon... and it showed no mention or indication of Drachan Troops being there.

' _This must be the so-called Butterfly Effect that_ he _warned me about_ ,' she mused, ' _Dammit! I need to be more careful from here on out_ ,'

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Anders' voice.

" _ **This presents a problem to the overall mission, Doré,**_ " the A.I. stated, " _ **If Drachan troops are coming, chances are**_ **he** _ **might be among them**_ ,"

Doré grabbed the bridge of her nose, as her eyes squeezed shut.

"I know, Anders! I know!" she said, not wanting her partner to repeat what she already knew.

" _ **I believe it's time that we meet with Professor Ozpin, and seek asylum in Beacon-**_ ," Anders began to say only to be stopped by Doré's shout.

"Absolutely NOT!" she snapped, "I will NOT go to _him_ of all people for help! He refused to tell everything to his inner circle, because of his trust issues, while his over passive nature allowed Salem's little pet to sabotage the Vytal Festival, and cause the downfall of Beacon, and the reason why Remnant is now a hellhole!"

It was quiet for a moment until Anders spoke.

" _ **Is it that, or do you blame him for you not being naturally born a human?**_ " That question made Doré wince, " _ **And, unintentionally I might add, caused the deaths of the two people who could've been your parents? One out of an emotional sense of duty, and the other out of grief?**_ "

Doré's hand clenched into a fist as she processed those words. She was silent for a moment till she spoke again.

"No. And we're NOT going there. That's final," she gritted out, "So just drop it, and don't EVER bring it up again,"

She heard a mechanical sigh afterward, _**"As you wish...,**_ "

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile...On the continent of Drache.**_

* * *

The IMD base, known to inhabitants as Drachenhöhle, was abuzz with activity, as Personnel readied the ships of the air and naval fleets for the task force's next mission in the Kingdom of Vale.

Officially to the citizens of said Kingdom, the Drachan troops were to serve as extra security for the upcoming Vytal Festival in the coming fall. Unofficially, they were being called in to apprehend the so-called Maiden Knight.

In order to keep up the appearance that they were there as extra security, they were bringing one of each of their air and naval fleets, along with a corps of men, aircraft, vehicles, and supplies.

The preparations were almost done, as a man looks from the bridge of the flagship, called the Erzengel, dressed in a regal dress uniform, many would see in any military. The man's other features, included grey colored hair, cold cobalt eyes, and standing at approximately 6 feet 3 inches. The pins on the shoulder boards of his uniform identify him as an Admiral, as he mused over the mission the Councils of Remnant have given, aside from the security detail.

Normally, such a thing as a vigilante, who is doing what those spineless cowards would not, wouldn't concern him as much. However, he also saw this as the perfect opportunity to show those damn Hunters just how incompetent they really were.

"Admiral Blaive, sir," the man turned and saw another man in a somewhat matching uniform, but with the pins of a captain instead, "The task force is assembled, and are waiting for the order, sir,"

The Admiral, Helyot Blaive, gave a simple nod.

"Then, let us proceed captain. Inform the fleet, we set off for Vale," he ordered, and the Captain nodded, before saluting.

"Yes sir!"

The captain then carried out the order which was soon conveyed to all of the other ships, both aerial and naval, and soon enough, the entire fleet began the journey to the kingdom of Vale.

As the fleet began it trek, the Admiral, couldn't help the small smirk appearing on his face.

' _Now matter how little it may be_ ,' he mused, ' _This will be the beginning of the end for those arrogant Hunters_ ,'

* * *

 _ **Back at Beacon**_.

* * *

"Well, tomorrow is our first joint mission together!" Ruby said cheerfully, as she, her team, and Team JNPR walked back to their dorms, "And what makes it more exciting, we're going to look for a famous vigilante!"

Weiss sighed at her partner's over-eagerness.

"Ruby, this person we're going after has killed people, even if they were criminals," she said in a reprimanding tone, "We can't let our guard down around her, not even for a minute!"

"Well sorry for being excited, Princess," Ruby grumbled, which didn't escape Weiss' ears, as she gave a pointed look at the Rose.

"What was that, Dolt?"

As the two began one of their little arguments, Jaune Arc, the leader of Team JNPR, was looking at his own partner with concern. The reason being the slight shadows under the redhead champion's emerald eyes, and the fact she rubbing which showed she had been having trouble sleeping. He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump slightly, before relaxing, noticing it was just him.

"You okay, Pyrrha?" he asked, "You look tired."

Pyrrha gave a smile, as she answered her 'not-so-secret' crush.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," she said, "I've been having the same dream over the past week. Kept me awake at night,"

Jaune blinks at that, his concern rising a little more.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asked, while the champion of Mistral shook her head.

"No, I'll be fine for right now," she said, "Let's talk about it after we finish our mission tomorrow. And hopefully, I'll get some more sleep then,"

Jaune didn't fully buy that, but decided not to press any further.

"Okay, if you say so." he said, "But if you want to talk about it sooner, just tell me, okay?"

Pyrrha blushed slightly, smiling as she nodded.

"Right," she said, just as the two teams arrived at their respective dorms. After saying good night to each other, Team JNPR went into their own dorm, and prepared to sleep for the night.

However, as the rest of her team went to sleep quickly, Pyrrha however, was deeply troubled. The dream she had been having lately since last week, she couldn't make heads or tails of. It was the same thing since that night...

...a little girl, with red streaked blonde hair, all alone, and crying. Of course, the most shocking part of the dream was...that the girl's face, and eyes were exactly like her own when she was that young. The only difference was, when she tried to comfort the girl, said child looked her...with fear.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _ **And finally posted! Sorry this took so long my readers! With RWBY Volume 4, my grandfather, new ideas, and finally the holidays, it took me awhile to get this posted. But now, it is! Now, you're all probably wondering what the Imperial Military of Drache looks like, well that be explained in the next chapter, so until then...sayonara!**_


	3. Chapter 2: Grammí Aímatos

_**Patriot-112: And here I am with another chapter folks. Though not a lot of reviews, I'm getting a good amount of favs and follows for this story, as well as on my profile, so I'm doing SOMETHING right. For those of you, having negative views on the Imperial Military of Drache...please hold your gripes until AFTER the story progresses a little more, not before.**_

 _ **Sigh... Sorry, just feeling a little salty right now. Now, I said that in this chapter, I will show what the Drache forces will look like. While that's true, it's gonna be a long list of stuff that 117Jorn put together, which won't come out for a while.**_

 _ **So, enough chit-chat, let's begin.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 2:**_

 _ **Grammí Aímatos**_

* * *

It was precisely 7:00 AM in the morning as Teams RWBY and JNPR arrived at the Bullhead Airship docks which will take them to Vale.

Though Pyrrha still looked to be tired, she assured her teammates and friends that she was alright, and could still help complete the mission. Of course, even though the others accepted it, Jaune couldn't help but be concerned for his partner/teacher.

But before he could think of asking what's going on, They had already arrived at the dock where they were to meet Qrow, and the said veteran Huntsman was there, waiting for them, with his back against the side of a Bullhead.

"You're on time. That's good," the man said, as he took another swig from flask which caused some of the group of friends, particularly Weiss, to frown a bit.

"Now, before we get going, I want ALL of you to watch other's back," Qrow began to say, "Sure it may just one girl we're going after, but this one girl defeated a whole platoon of White Fang grunts, by herself. From what we know about her so far, she's a skilled and ruthless fighter. So, my point being, don't underestimate her, not even for a second...is that clear?"

Everyone of the students nodded at that.

"Okay, glad we're on the same page," he said, before placing one foot in the Bullhead, "Well, all aboard kids..."

The said students all did exactly, with Jaune being a little apprehensive, before a little coaxing by Pyrrha helped him get onboard. Qrow noticed but didn't comment on it, verbally at least.

 _'This is gonna be a long ride_ ,'

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, Enroute between Vale and Drache**_

* * *

The ships of the IMD task force continued on their course toward Vale, all of them arranged in a convoy system meant to protect them from any seafaring Grimm. Especially the damn Sea Dragons.

In his personal quarters aboard the Erzengel, Admiral Blaive was looking through the reports that they were given to by the Council of Vale and their forward scouts in the area, pertaining to priority targets that would pose a problem, like Grimm nests, suspected White Fang meeting places and hideouts, and of course, same old political bureaucratic nonsense.

However, his full focus was on the one who they were covertly hired to apprehend, the one calling herself, the Maiden Knight. From what he saw from the footage they were given, this girl was by no means a pushover.

He was currently watching the footage, alongside the commander of the Ground Forces, one Brigadier General Albin Shirlitz.

"Remarkable...," the General said, as he watched the girl decimate any White Fang goon that stood in her path, "...such talent is rare these days,"

Blaive nodded as he continued to watch the footage, before his eyes squinted.

"You notice anything familiar in how she fights close quarters?" he said, and the General blinked and looked at the footage. It was a moment before his eyes widened.

"But that's...!"

Blaive nodded, "Yes, that's IMD CQC she's using, in conjunction with that Huntress style," he said, before Schirlitz turned to him.

"That must mean someone from Drache trained her...but who?" he said, while Blaive shook his head.

"We'll find out once we've captured her," he said and looked to the General, "For now, I want our forces to be ready once we arrive in Vale. I want our airships, gunships, and fighters to bomb every single nest of Grimm within a hundred kilometer radius of the city, and have our ground troops deal with any Grimm that survive. I don't want to see, smell, or even hear a Grimm while we're there."

Schirlitz nodded and saluted. "Consider it done, sir," he said, and Blaive nodded before telling him he was dismissed and the General did that leaving Blaive to continue looking at the footage.

"Just who are you, my dear?" he asked, before his eyes widen slightly as he saw her throw her shield and it impacted three WF grunts before it returned to her.

"No that can't be..." he said, thinking of one person who did a move like that.

* * *

 _ **Vale Royal Palace**_

* * *

Doré smirked slightly as she just finished her modifications. Which where her adding the stealth components from the Nightshade Armor to her own standard set. And now, all she had to do was see if it works.

After placing her armor back on she then stood in the center of the room.

" _ **There's a 50/50 chance that this could either work, or...well, it probably just won't work**_ ," Anders said, which caused Doré to frown.

"You were going to say explode, weren't you?" she asked rhetorically.

" _ **...Maybe**_ ," was the only answer she got, and the girl just sighed.

"Well, here goes nothing," she said, as she pressed the activation button on her shoulder. And the results were what she wanted as her whole body turned invisible, including her whole head, thanks to the field generated by the components she modded to the mask.

The red streaked blonde's smirk then turned into a small grin.

"First test is a success," she said to herself, "I think this warrants a nighttime field test. Don't you agree Anders?"

" _ **Of course. Though, I should advise to keep your activities minimal when the IMD Task Force arrives in Vale...which is, precisely, fifteen hours from now**_ ," The voice warned, which caused Doré to frown in worry.

She was hoping that she had more time before Drache came to Vale, but unfortunately, IMD ships are considered faster than Atlesian ships, and whoever quoted that, was not wrong.

' _Still, I still have enough time in order to complete this field test and come back_.' she thought to herself, ' _I would need to stay low until the Vytal Festival, or, failing that, head to the second hideout. I hope Adler has kept it safe **.**_ '

The second hideout she was thinking about, was an old Valean Military base just ten miles outside of the city. It was abandoned five years for some half brain reason, but most of the equipment was still there, of course which she added a few things to. It was set up that if this hideout was compromised, she would pack-up what she could and head there.

But right now, that hasn't happened yet.

"We'll worry about that till after they arrive," she said, "For now, let's get ready for tonight."

" _ **You're the boss, Doré. You're the boss**_ ,"

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile**_...

* * *

Team JNPR were walking through the old suburbs of Vale, after they were dropped off by the Bullhead, which our favorite Arc did not enjoy the ride one bit. After the said transport left them, Qrow, as the team leader decided it best for them to split up and cover more ground.

Thus, Ruby volunteered to go with him, while dragging a very reluctant Weiss along, to check out where the Maiden Knight was last seen, while Yang on the other hand volunteered to go downtown to meet with a 'contact', with Blake going with her. Thus Qrow instructed Team JNPR to check out the Old Suburb district, near the Old Vale Royal Palace.

As they looked around the area, and looking for clues, Nora decided to speak up.

"Ya know, I sometimes wonder why the Four Kingdoms of Remnant are called that," the Valkyrie said as she scratched her head in confusion, "I mean, we're lead by elected councils instead of kings or queens. How does that work?"

It was Ren who answered her, "The Royal families still exist Nora, if that's what you're implying. The reason why the monarchs are no longer involved with the government, was because that was one of the reasons why the Great War started. You see, during the time when Mantle was still the ruling Kingdom on Solitus, the last king never understood human rights, and individuality, and his people suffered greatly for it. Overtime, his oppression began to sow anarchy and distrust among the other kingdoms, and it soon became a free-for-fall which we know as the Great War. The councils decided that it was best that elected governments make the major decisions for the kingdoms, and overtime, the Royal Families were regulated to just a ceremonial figurehead status. But even though the Monarchs are no longer in charge, their mark on the kingdoms still stand."

"However," He continued, "as the war went on, the elite class of society still continued it's oppression of individual freedom, and soon enough was enough, and thus, the Huntsman and Huntresses rose to end the fighting, and thus tensions began to cool down. Though Mantle still refused to back, eventually they had no choice, due to them losing all their wealth and prosperity when Atlas became the new kingdom. Thus, everyone learned that power corrupts, no matter how you use it to do good," he finished and looked to Nora who had swirls for eyes as her head swiveled.

"Ugh, too many words...," she muttered, as Ren sighed.

Meanwhile, Jaune was looking at his partner with more concern, as he noticed the troubled expression on Pyrrha's face. He had noticed it this morning, and during the ride on the Bullhead, even though his motion sickness was hitting him like a sledgehammer, and now after they split off from the others.

Deciding that she needed someone to talk he walked beside her.

"Hey Pyrrha," he said, making the said champion look in his direction, "You okay? You had that look on your face ever since we left Beacon,"

Pyrrha blinked before giving a smile, "Y-yeah, I'm alright...nothing to be worried about," she said, though Jaune wasn't buying it. He then placed his hand on the redhead's shoulder, causing her to blush a bit.

"Pyrrha come on." he persistently said, "If something's bothering you, then you tell what it is. We're partners, you can trust me. An Arc never goes back on his word."

Pyrrha looked at Jaune for a moment, before looking at Ren and Nora, and then grabbed his arm and brought them a little forward ahead of their two teammates. When she believed they were far enough away, she turned to him to speak.

"Jaune, you remember when I said that I hadn't been sleeping well for a while?" she asked, causing Jaune to blink, before nodding.

"Ah, yeah." he said, "You said it was because of a dream, right?"

Pyrrha nodded at that, "Yes, I've been having the same one, over and over again, everytime I fall asleep. And for some strange reason, that dream has gotten more vivid, ever since we saw that footage of the Maiden Knight,"

Jaune's eyes widen at that.

"W...what was the dream about?" he asked and Pyrrha looked ahead of them.

"I...I was in some kind of ruin, like an old palace...not seen anywhere in the Four Kingdoms," she began, "...I was fighting these dark faceless figures who were attacking me, as I looked around the palace, though I manage to defeat them. But then...after I defeated the last one, that's when I heard it."

Jaune blinked at that, "Heard what?" he asked, and Pyrrha looked back to him.

"Crying...," she said with a solemn tone, "I heard what sounded like a child crying,"

Jaune didn't say anything, as he let Pyrrha continue.

"I immediately began following the sound, and searched the whole place until I suddenly found a room, with a dim light coming from it," she said, as her head drooped, "I...I then opened the door, and in the room, there was a single cot bed...but it was who was sitting on the cot that got my attention..."

The Arc picked up on Pyrrha's pause to ask.

"Who...who was it?" he said, and Pyrrha looked at him, her own emerald eyes showing a hint of sorrow.

"It was... a little girl." she said, "She looked no older than five years old, and...she was crying, the sound of it alone was just heartbreaking, along with how bruised and injured she appeared."

Her eyes closed tightly as she clenched her hand into a fist over her chest as she remembered that part of her dream.

"I, I approached her in order to comfort her, and when I called out to her, she raised her head up and then..." it was at this, she gulped, as she turned as white as a sheet, "...I saw her face, and it...it looked exactly like mine, when I was her age! And her eyes...Gods Jaune, even her eyes were the same as mine! The only difference was that her hair was blonde, with red streaks mixed in it,"

By this point Jaune's face, morphed into shock.

"But then, when she looked at me...she just, recoiled away from me, and pressed herself back to the wall. The look on her face, in her eyes, she...she looked like she was afraid of me! Before I could ask what's wrong...the dream ends right there at that moment." when she finished, she looked at Jaune, who was now looking disturbed by what Pyrrha just told him. "And ever since then, I've been trying to make sense of what I saw in that dream. I...I even heard stories from my mother how people in the past have had similar dreams... just before something bad happens. I'm not sure what my dream means Jaune...but, but I'm scared that if I don't find out soon, it will be too late!"

Jaune then took that moment to place his hands on both of Pyrrha's shoulders.

"Whoa, easy Pyrrha!" Jaune said, "Just calm down, and take a breath for a moment! You don't need to do it alone."

Pyrrha perked up at this, as Jaune gave her a comforting smile.

"You have me, Ren, Nora, and all of Team RWBY to help you," he said, "We're a team Pyrrha. If one of us in trouble, it's up to the rest of us to help them out. I promise, we'll figure this out together,"

Pyrrha looked at Jaune, with surprise, as the blush came back. Though she was still uneasy about the dream, just having Jaune close and talk to her, made her feel comfortable. She smiled gratefully, as she wiped the trace of tears in her eyes.

"Thank you Jaune," she said, while Jaune's smile grew.

"What are partners for?" he asked, causing them to laugh. Meanwhile, both Nora and Ren were watching not too far away. Though they didn't hear anything, they knew it concerned Pyrrha due to her body language.

They might not know what it is she was talking about to Jaune, but as teammates, they were going to help her, no matter what.

* * *

 _ **Downtown Vale, Junior's Club**_

* * *

"CLOSE THE DOOR! SHE'S COMIN'!" shouted a suited thug, as he and another ran through through the double doors and started closing them.

Hei "Junior" Xiong, the owner of the club, sighs in irritation as he hears the ruckus and stops in his observing of the damage done to his club months ago, and going to check on what was going on.

"What the heck are you morons doing!?" he shouted at the men at the entrance, who turned to look at him.

"Junior! She's back! She's just outside the-"

BOOM!

The henchmen was cut off as the door blew open. And coming in through the smoke, was the one person that entire club didn't want to see again for a long while.

"Guess who's back!?" Yang shouted merrily, only to have a large assortment of guns pointing at her.

"Uh, Yang, I don't think they're happy to see you," said Blake as she entered the club, and was on edge due to all the guns pointed at her partner.

"Stop! Stop!" shouted Junior as he came up the stairs, "Don't. Shoot,"

He pushes the thugs aside as he looks at Yang.

"Blondie, you're back...why?" He said, a little on edge, since he didn't want her to mess up his club again.

Yang smirks, knowing she's got this guy by the balls.

"Well, for starters, Junior. You still owe me that drink," with that she marched up and grabbed Junior's arm, and dragging him away to the bar.

Meanwhile, Blake could only look on in bewilderment at how Yang has the situation handled, she then sighs before smiling.

"I got some interesting friends," she says, before going to join them.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile**_

 _ **Vale Harbor**_

 _ **Dock adjacent of SDC dock**_

* * *

Qrow, Ruby, and Weiss were at the last known place the Maiden Knight was spotted last. They had already talked to the watchman, who didn't see anything because it was too dark, and were looking around the dock for any clue, that the girl vigilante may have dropped. As they were doing this, Ruby began to think on why the girl would be doing this. Targeting and killing people the way she does.

She then turned to her uncle to ask this.

"Hey, Uncle Qrow?" she said, making the said man turn to her.

"What is it, Ruby?" he asks, noticing the said Rose Reaper's frown on her face.

"I've been thinking about the Maiden Knight...," she says, before looking at him "...why do you think she does what she does?"

The man sighs as he takes out his flask and looks up into the early evening sky.

"Well kid, let me put it this way...," he began, "...vigilantes need specific reasons which make them do the things they do. For instance, if it was just Faunus she would've gone after every single one she could find, but so far, the only ones she's gone after are members of the White Fang. Not mention she's also been targeting humans as well, so the fact she's strictly anti-faunus is off the table, especially since she's gone after people who share the False Schnee, Jacques Gelee's, way of thinking,"

He noticed the said Heiress shift uncomfortingly at that, knowing it was true. Despite having married into the Schnee family, Jacques Gelee, was not a true Schnee, and in fact, his extreme ways. has sullied the principles that her Grandfather, Nicholas Schnee, had founded the company on.

"So, from what we're seeing so far, she's only going after hardliners, both Faunus and Humans. My guess is trying to prevent tensions from spiraling out of control, like it has been these past few years, despite the Councils' attempts to cover it up," Qrow continued, before sighing again, "But the number question on my mind is this...what is her true motive? What drives her to do this, despite the fact that the Councils and the White Fang either want her dead or in chains? Of course, the answer to that question is to ask her herself,"

"Hence, why we're looking for her?" Ruby and Qrow nodded.

"Yeah, not to mention she's painted a huge fat target on her back, since she's no doubt wanted either dead by the White Fang and other criminal, and imprisoned by the Councils of Remnant, since their pride is hurt. Of course the problem with that is that she's become a celebrity among the people, with the most superstitious believing that she is a reincarnated warrior from the past," he answered, chuckling slightly "And it's our job, to get her off the streets before anything bad happens, or she's arrested by the authorities, and that would cause quite the shouting match which will devolve into chaos. And that is a very big 'no-no'... You girls can guess as to why,"

The two girls grimaced at that, knowing what he meant.

Qrow then sighed, "Well, let's get back to finding this girl, we'll keep looking for another hour, then we'll head back and try again in the morning," he said, and the two girls nodded and went back on their search.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile**_.

* * *

Doré smiled in satisfaction as she jumped from rooftop to rooftop, all while under the cover of the new Stealth feature of her armor, with no one on the ground even noticing. If anyone had good eyesight, or they were real close, they would've spotted a shimmer. Thankfully no one was following her, which meant she wasn't seen...yet. Still, with this added to her arsenal, her chances of succeeding have gone up, as well as her getting justice for Tukson.

"So far, so good. I'd say that tonight's been productive," Doré commented as she landed on another, before stopping to rest for a moment.

" _ **Indeed,**_ " she heard Anders reply, " _ **But still, we must be very careful. Even though you're invisible to the naked eye, you'll still be spotted by Atlesian robots or soldiers who use Thermal Optics. If they have those, your cover's blown**_ ,"

Doré nods at this.

"I'll be sure to remember that," she said, "Let's head back, I don't want to be out when the IMD arrive,"

With that she began her trek back to the Royal palace...

...However, she was unaware that she was being watched from a far distance, as the targeting reticle of a sniper's scope zoomed in on her, her body glowing indicating infrared.

"This is Omega 3, target spotted in downtown sector, heading north. Over."

" _ **Copy that, Omega 3. Stay on her, though keep a safe distance. Ove**_ r,"

"Wilco,"

* * *

 _ **With Blake and Yang**_

* * *

"So, what can you tell me about the vigilante that's been beating other thugs recently?" Yang asked as she and Blake sat the Bar, "Ya know, the Maiden Knight?"

Junior, who was in the middle of a swig of his beverage, began coughing as soon as he heard what came out of Yang's mouth.

"Wha...you're not serious right!?" the information broker said, his eyes wide in fear. As soon as he saw the serious frowns on the two girls' faces though, he knew they weren't kidding, "Oh Gods, you two are crazy going after her!"

The two blink as Blake was the next one to ask.

"Why is that?" she said.

Junior shuddered as he went down memory lane, which was relatively a recent memory.

"She came in here three weeks ago, threatened to castrate me with that sword of hers, while using her polarity semblance to shove metal shavings into the wound if I so much as talk to Torchwick ever again," he explained, his voice indicating how scared he was.

The two blinked at that, as Yang asked the next one.

"You said she used Polarity, right?" Yang asked, and Junior nodded.

"Yeah, and I could tell you all the freaky stuff she does to metal with it when I first saw her," he said, while Yang shook her head.

"No, that's cool. Anything else?" she said, and Junior shook his head no.

"Just what I told you," he said, "I don't want her coming back and actually going through with her threat,"

Yang nodded at that, "Right. Let's go Blake," she said, and the two students left the club, wanting to report their findings to Qrow.

* * *

Doré continued on her way back to the, using the same rooftop route to head back the way she came. Soon, the said complex was in her sight, before she began to speed and made a strong leap through the air, while in mid-flight, she deactivates the Nightshade System. However, the effort was heard, and before she even landed on the roof across the road, four pairs of eyes saw her.

"Eh, you guys saw that right?" asked Jaune as he thought he saw a shimmer fly through the air.

"Yeah, I did," Pyrrha answered, her eyes narrowed at what she just saw.

"We did as well," Ren complied, "We should tell the others,"

As team JNPR moved to follow their supposed target, they didn't notice the other figure making also it's way into the complex.

* * *

Meanwhile, Doré arrives at her building in the north-western quarter, of the Palace complex. She enters the building through the door, and down the staircase.

On the building just across from hers, the figure watches through their sniper scope, as Doré descends down the stairs and enters her room. The Thermal Optic feature still on, allowing them to see.

"This is Omega-3, found the Fox's den. Please advise,"

" _ **This is command, your orders are to neutralize the target, and bring her in alive. Proceed with discretion, over,**_ "

"Understood," Omega-3 complied, before the said stalker proceeded to open the bolt of his sniper rifle, and drawing what looked to be to a green glossed cartridge, with holes in the back and a glass bullet, with a green liquid seen inside it, with a needle on the tip.

After examining man, Omega-3 then loads the special cartridge into the rifle and proceeds to set up position. Waiting patiently for the right opportunity to strike.

* * *

Qrow blinks as he just finished hearing what Yang told him what she learned from her 'contact'. He mentally cringed at the castration and metal shavings bit, but was now more interested in the fact that the girl had a Polarity semblance.

"Hmm, I gotta admit, she's more vicious than I thought," Qrow commented, "Anything else aside from the Polarity Semblance?"

" _Nope, my 'informant' was too scared to say anything else_." he heard Yang said, along with a sigh, " _Anyway, we're heading back towards you, hope you guys found something we didn't,_ "

The man sighed at that, "Unfortunately, nada," he said, "When you meet back with us, we'll contact your friends in Team JNPR and ask if they found anything."

" _Right! See ya soon!_ " with that she ended the call, but not a second later, his scroll beeped, as the caller id of the said leader of said team appeared on the screen.

' _Well speak of the devil...,_ ' he thought as he answered, "Jaune, what did you and your team find?"

" _Well, considering that we saw said Vigilante enter the old Vale Royal Palace, I think that means we found her...*Slap* Ow! Pyrrha!_ " Jaune's voice was heard, as Qrow blinked and his face turned serious.

"You found her?" he said, the tone of his voice wanting no bullshit.

" _Yeah, we found her. She's hiding in the Northwest Corner building of the Palace Complex. We can see a light on the sixth floor._ " Jaune said.

"Wait till we get there, I'm calling in the Bullhead, and once we pick up Yang and Blake, we'll head straight to your location!" Qrow advised. "But don't try to engage, wait until you hear the sound the Bullhead coming, then head in."

" _No problem, see ya in a few_ ," Jaune then cut the line.

Qrow then turned to his niece and the heiress.

"Guess what, girls," He called out to the two partners who looked to him, "We found her."

* * *

Doré entered her room, sighing tiredly before walking into the center of the room and prepared to remove her armor.

" _ **Doré, we have a problem**_ ," Anders spoke causing the young girl to stop what she was doing.

"What is it?" she asked.

" _ **I detected a IMD signal nearby**_ ," he said, causing Doré's eyes to widen, _**"I'd only just now picked it up. The reason why I haven't detected it before now, was probably because running the new stealth mode interfered with my scanners. I've already identified the signal... Doré, it's a Ranger.**_ "

Doré's heart leaped into her throat at that. Rangers were skilled scouts and snipers, and were the first troops the IMD would send into a potential battlezone, in order to gather information or take out key HVTs. And now one of them was just outside, looking at her. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Where is he?" she asked.

" _ **Building adjacent to ours,**_ " Anders informs. " _ **He sees you, and he's armed with a sniper rifle, but he is no doubt using non-lethal rounds in order to take you in alive. I advise staying away from the windows**_ ,"

Doré nodded before she calmly crouched down and carefully moved into the shadows of the room, which was near the last window, hoping to stay out of the sniper's firing arc.

* * *

The said Ranger watched as his target was preparing to remove her armor only for her to suddenly stop. He then watched as she crouched down, and moved to the other side of the room, outside his line of fire. He blinks, as he watches this sudden behavior, before realization hits him.

"She's know I'm here," he muses, before activating his comm, "Command, this Omega-3, target is somehow aware of my presence. Advise,"

" _Continue observation of the target, Omega-3. Use any opportunity to neutralize,_ " Command ordered.

"10-4 Command" the Ranger acknowledged, and continues to watch the target, watching with the Thermal feature of his scope, as he aims at the unprotected area of her neck. Once hit there, the tranquilizing agent in the dart round will act quickly.

However, he blinked as the sound of an airship's engines caught his attention. Looking up, he spotted a Bullhead fly over, before landing on the roof of the target building.

* * *

Doré blinked as she heard the sound of VTOL jet engines rumbling outside.

"Anders, what's going on!?" she said, now more concerned than ever.

" _ **I'm not sure!**_ " Anders said in concern, _**"I'm not detecting any other IMD signals!**_ "

Doré was about to ask what she meant by that, but the doors of the room fly open admitting four people. She looked in their direction, and when her eyes landed on two specific people, one a blonde haired, blue eyed young man, wearing white armor over a black hoodie and armed with a sword shield with two wave arc emblazoned on the face, and the second, a girl, with her red hair up into a high ponytail, wearing a set of Mistralian gold and bronze armor, and a bronze circlet on her head, and wielding a short sword with a rounded shield.

Her eyes widened in both fear and horror, as she looked at the two. She was hoping not to meet these two so soon, in fact she wasn't planning to meet them in person ever!

' _No. No, not them!_ ' Doré thought frantically, ' _Please Gods no!_ '

 _ **"Doré, you need to calm down!**_ " Anders said quietly, but urgently. Doré didn't hear him, as she looked from the far door on the other side of the room. And then back to them, " _ **No, don't even think about it. The Ranger is still out there!**_ "

Doré still didn't hear him as her fear induced panic continued to rise.

' _I have to get away...I have to get away!_ ' she thought to herself as a memory played in her mind. A memory of him.

" _They would only see as an abomination of their cells, you stupid clone. A monster, a thing! Remember that... **REMEMBER IT!**_ "

That did it, as she bolted up and began to run to the door, catching the group of four's attention.

" _ **Doré, NOO!**_ "

Just as she was halfway to the door, the breaking of glass, and a sharp sting in her neck, caused her to gasp, before she barreled right through the door to the next room and then into the hallway.

* * *

"What the hell!?" Jaune shouted as he saw their objective rush right in front of them toward another door, before one of the windows she ran in front of shattered, and she barreled right into the next room.

"Hey there's someone in the building across from us!" Nora shouted as she readied her Magnhild.

Ren also spotted them, before he turned to Jaune and Pyrrha.

"Go after her, we'll deal with whoever's over there!" he said, and the two nodded and went off in pursuit. Ren then turned to Nora who was already launching herself toward the other building.

He sighed before he went after her.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Ranger curses as he sees the two coming toward him, and pulls out his pistol and begins to open fire.

He managed to hit the Maiden Knight in the neck, but now that these Hunters showed up, he just made their job easier.

' _Dammit! I was so close!_ ' he thought angrily as he ran from his compromised position.

* * *

With Doré, she was swaying side to side as the effect of the tranquilizer now in her system was doing it's work. A hand on her head as she tried to fight off the effects.

 _'Dammit, of all the tranquilizers it had to be this one!_ ' she thought panickedly.

The said tranquilizer that was now coursing through her system, was a special concoction which worked in three stages. And right now, she was suffering the effects of the first stage, temporary disorientation.

' _I...I have t-to... s-stay awake... got to...fight it_!'

As she said that, she felt her knees beginning to buckle, as she leaned against the wall.

' _Come on...you're stronger than this...don't-_ ,' she was cut off as she finally lost her balance and proceeded to crumple to the floor.

Her eyes widened in terror behind her mask, while gritting her teeth as she tried to will her body to get back up. However, it was too late as the second stage of the tranquilizer kicked, motor function shutdown.

"Hey! Are you alright!" a voice shouted. One of two that Doré recognized so well, both from her dreams, and from the scroll she carried. She began to tremble as she heard the sounds of their footsteps coming toward her.

'This...this can't be happening! Not now!' she screamed in her mind, as she felt someone's hands on her shoulder before she rolled onto her back, and held gently by none other than Pyrrha, herself, with Jaune right beside her as they looked down at her with concern.

"...N-No...P-Please...No...," she managed to gasp out fearfully, as the final stage of the drug began to affect her.

"Hey, it's alright. We're not going to hurt you," Pyrrha tried to assure her, but instead the girl kept on muttering the same thing over and over again, and soon, tears were seen coming from under the mask.

The two only looked on in confusion, before the champion, showing more concern, suddenly began to slowly reach for her mask.

As soon as her fingers grasped it, she made a small tug which resulted in the mask coming, revealing the face of the person they knew by the title of the Maiden Knight.

Her and Jaune's reaction was obvious as both their eyes widened, as they see a familiar face and familiar eyes staring back at them...both resembling Pyrrha's own. The matching pair of emerald green only looked up at them, fear seen clear as day of day, as she tried to talk...but what she said came out as mumbled gibberish, as she lost the fight to ward off the third stage of the tranquilizer...total shutdown.

As she gave one last whimper, Doré's eyes fluttered closed, as her head lulled to the side.

Jaune and Pyrrha only looked at the now out cold vigilante, as a thousand questions buzzed in their heads. Too many to pick up which one to mentally ask about the current situation before them.

The sounds of feet approaching were heard as Qrow, along with Team RWBY, along with Nora and Ren soon arrived.

"Hey, are you... guys... o...?" Ruby began to say as they ran up to them, but the last word died in her mouth as she and the others look at the now unmasked face of the Maiden Knight. Which caused some of them to look between Pyrrha and the girl on the floor.

"Either my drinking is making me see things, or I'm looking a blonde haired version of you kid," Qrow pointed out, motioning to Pyrrha, who didn't answer as she continued looking at Doré, more specifically, her hair, which made her remember the girl from her dream... blonde with red streaks.

She felt her fingers touch something, causing her to blink. She then proceeded to move the unconscious girl's limp head to the left, and she, along with everyone else, spotted what looked to be some sort of dart in the girl's neck.

"What is that?" Yang asked, as her uncle bent to get a closer look, before reaching out, and carefully removing it from the girl's neck.

Qrow frowned as he examined the dart like object, before it clicked into his head.

"This...is an Drachan Rifle Tranquilizer Dart, military grade," Qrow answered causing everyone, but Jaune and Pyrrha, to look at him, "These are commonly used by IMD Rangers to neutralize enemy HVTs on either the battlefield, or behind enemy lines, who will be later be picked up by a retrieval squad."

He then looked at the unconscious girl before them.

"And if IMD is after her, it means that someone paid them to bring her in," the experienced pointed out, sighing before pocketing the Dart, and grabbing his flask. "And if any of you watched the news, you know who I mean."

The students were all silent at that, until Ren broke it.

"We saw the sniper outside," Ren informed, "We chased after him, but he managed to escape,"

Qrow sighed again as he took a quick swig of his liquor, before placing the cap back on.

"Don't worry about at the moment." he says, "As a matter of fact, Drache just made our job easier. Let's get back to the room she was staying in, gather up what we can carry, and get it and her back to Beacon."

Everyone nodded except Jaune and Pyrrha, who were both still looking at the girl's face. Both wondering what the heck was going on.

* * *

"Command, this is Omega-3," the Drachan Ranger said, with mild anger, into his comm, "I hit the target, but a Hunter Team arrived before I could retrieve her. Judging by how inexperienced these kids, they must be students from Beacon Academy. Advise..,"

" _Fall back for now, Omega-3...rendezvous with a Commando unit a few clicks outside the palace. Command, out,_ "

"Acknowledged...,"

* * *

"So, Ozpin's little children got to her before we could?" Admiral Blaive said, as a Lieutenant stood before him after he delivered the report.

"Yessir," the younger man said, which caused the man to sigh.

"Disappointing," he said, before he dismissed the junior officer, who quickly did so, before a smirk formed on his face, "This could somehow work to our advantage."

He said as he turned around to look at the screen, showing a split screen of two different recordings. On the right was of Pyrrha Nikos, during her third win at the Mistral Regional Tournament, and on the left was of the Maiden Knight.

He noticed the similarities between the two women, seeing as they have the same fighting style, and that they use a Polarity Semblance. However, he noticed that while Pyrrha didn't broadcast her powers like a bonfire, the Maiden Knight had no such qualms.

Another fact he noticed, that while Sanctum's Champion was quite a formidable opponent, she wasn't as ruthless, compared to the Maiden Knight. And he was determined to find out who exactly the vigilante is, and who was it that trained her.

'Either by politics, or by force. I will get you in Drache's grasp,' Blaive thought to himself, 'The skills you possess, are wasted on the Hunters who abandoned us so long ago. Either we have her, or no one will."

* * *

 _ **A/N: And another chapter done! But before I go, a little short scene..**_.

* * *

 _ **Short Scene: 'Why didn't you just tell him?**_ '

Doré was standing in the clearing she picked in the the forest north of Vale, as good place to hone her skills. It was isolated, quiet, and no signs of any Grimm. And if there were, she had dealt with them quickly.

She had it literally beaten into her skull that practice will keep her mind sharp, and her body strong. And she took it to heart.

She took out a scroll from the pouch on her belt and placed it on tree stump, before she turned it on and looked for one specific file.

After she found it, she pressed the play icon, before drawing Aurea Mors.

Soon, a young woman who had a perfect resemblance to her face and eyes, with the exception to her hair, appeared as the video began to play.

" _Alright Jaune, just like we practiced. Follow these instructions...,_ "

Doré took a deep breath as she waited for the session to begin.

" _Shield up,..._ "

The round shield rose into position.

" _Keep your grip tight,..._ "

She gripped the handle of her sword tight.

 _"Don't forget to keep your front foot forward..._ "

The said foot shifted slightly, as emerald eyes narrowed.

" _Ready? Go!_ "

With that, she thrusted the long-sword forward, giving a shout as she did.

 _"Again...,_ "

She then swung her sword in a frontal arc, causing a wave of air to flash forward from her.

" _And again...,_ "

She then spun around, slashing the air with strong force as she did.

 _"Okay...*giggles* now assuming that you're aren't cheating, we can take a break_ ,"

Doré stood up straight, panting a little, before turning to the recording on the scroll's screen.

" _I know this can be frustrating...,_ " the woman said, " _...and it can feel like so much effort to progress in such a small amount. But...I want you to know that I'm proud of you. I've never met someone so determined to better themselves. You've grown so much since we started training, and I know that this is just the beginning._ "

Doré closed her eyes as she took a shaky breath, listening to this woman's caring voice has helped to comfort her when she was depressed...but, she knew that this message wasn't meant for her...it was for the young man she loved.

She then watched as the woman's face turned apprehensive.

" _Jaune...I...I...I want you that I'm just happy to be a part of your life_ ," she said, crossing her gloved hands over her chest, while Doré winced as she gritted her teeth, " _I'll always be here for you, Jaune,_ "

The video then paused, as Doré shook in sadness, anger, and frustration.

"But you weren't in the end, you _idiot_...," she ground out, as a tear trailed down her face before dripping from her chin and landed on the ground, "...instead you sent him away and got yourself killed. And then he died later on, anyway! So what you did was die for nothing!"

She then snapped her head up as she glared at the face of the young woman.

"You hypocritical COWARD!" she snapped, "Why the hell couldn't you just tell him how you felt!? You fought Grimm and won a tournament FOUR times in a row, and you didn't have the spine to tell a boy how you felt about him!?"

With an angry scream, she threw her shield toward the line of trees, the strength behind the throw chopped down four in a row, before being lodged in a large rock. The said trees fall to the ground with a crash, as Doré collapsed to her knees, her body quivering.

"Why...?" she mumbled, "Why didn't you just tell him?"

* * *

 _ **And short scene done. Now this event occurred before the beginning of this story, and as you can see, despite being trained to be a badass warrior, Doré is still human. A human that is desperate that many people are unfortunate to have...a parent's unconditional love.**_

 _ **Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and short scene. Until next time!**_


	4. Chapter 3: Close Call

_**Patriot-112: Well, here's another chapter my friends. And of course, there are people who were confused, and griping, as to why Doré was easily brought down by a IMD Tranq Dart, well, the main reason is because seeing Pyrrha and Jaune made her freak out, and made her focus her Aura more to her legs in order run away fast to escape, rather than use it protect herself, thus the aura defense around her neck and head were weakened, and thus leaving her exposed to an attack. So I hope I got that confusing little itch out of your heads, and I'm SO SORRY for not putting down in the last chapter.**_

 _ **Also, yes, I know the IMD is a bit of an overfill, and probably won't be the last, considering our favorite Huntsmen and Huntresses in training already have to deal with the likes of Salem, her underlings, the Grimm, and the White Fang. It WAS my original plan to not have this kind of faction in this fic, but...having something like the IMD will help make Doré's origins more original than just following the set canon. I know that's a lame excuse, but that's all I can say.**_

 _ **Anyway, enough of my rambling, let's get on with it.**_

 _ **P.S.: From now on, I will add a short scene which will concern Doré, which take place outside the main story. Now, enough of that, LET'S CARRY ON!**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 3:**_

 _ **Close Call**_

* * *

 _ **Vale Royal Palace**_

* * *

Everyone was looking around the room where the Maiden Knight had made her home for the past few months her vigilante career started. Needless they were not expecting the amount of equipment, computers, and other things that she had. Of course, the weapons they found were being looked over by the resident weapon nut, as she ogled over them.

Qrow all the while was calling Ozpin on his scroll, and it didn't take long for the man to answer.

" _Qrow, good news?_ " the headmaster asked and Qrow sighed.

"That, and a little bit of bad news," he said, "Good news, we got her. Bad news, Drache is also after her, since a IMD Ranger pinged her with a Rifle Dart, but the kids managed to scare him off. However, people like you me and know, when there's one IMD soldier, there's bound to be a whole pack of them."

He heard the old man sigh, " _Unfortunate, but true._ " he said, "T _his complicates things. Better to return to Beacon with the girl, Qrow. If they're more IMD nearby, they'll be coming. And I rather not risk a fight,_ "

Qrow nodded at that, "We're gathering up whatever we can carry and getting ready to move now." he said, before turned to look at the assortment of gear. "You will not believe all the stuff this kid has Oz. Aside from a ton of electronics, she has enough of an arsenal to wage a small war."

He could feel Ozpin's frown on the other side of the scroll.

" _That is... disturbing_ ," he heard and Qrow nodded.

"Yeah, after we get all we can, we're outta here." he said, "I'll call back when we're all safely away,"

" _Of course, see you all back here,_ " Ozpin replied and then hung up. Qrow sighed, closing his scroll up.

'J _ust once I want a mission where it doesn't involve ME getting shot at_ ,'

* * *

Of course, given Qrow's semblance, it appeared Fate was indeed a cruel ass bitch.

Which came in the form of a wing of IMD Dropships, heading the Royal Palace. And in them, a whole unit of IMD S-Commandos, clad in their PXA armor, fully armed, and ready.

The commander of the unit was speaking to Command about their mission.

"This is Alpha Leader, E.T.A. to the target, 25 minutes," the commander reported.

" _Copy that, Alpha Leader...hold on, the Admiral wishes to speak_." Command informed, making the Commander stand at attention.

"T _his is Admiral Blaive._ " the voice of the Admiral boomed in his helmet's comm-set. " _Commander, mission parameters have been updated. I want the target brought back to the_ Erzengel _, alive AND unharmed._ "

"Copasetic, Admiral. We'll bring her back," the Commander replied.

" _Good...,_ " Blaive said, " _However...the Hunters-in-training...you are free to do whatever you deem necessary, but for the most part...they're disposable. Understood?_ "

The Commander nodded, "Received and will comply," he acknowledged and turned to the other commandos in the dropship with him. "Load up on anti-aura rounds. If the brats get in our way...take them out,"

* * *

"Alright kids, we better hurry up before more trouble arrives," Qrow said to the two teams, "So pack up anything you can carry and let's get back to the bullhead!"

Everyone did so as they began to look for anything of note to take back with them. All except for Pyrrha, who was looking after the still out cold vigilante, who they had placed on the full size bed, where she had no doubt slept before.

The young champion looked at the face of the person they knew as the Maiden Knight, more specifically her face, and her hair. Confusion and worry well up inside her, the former as to who this girl was and what did she look similar to her, and the latter, for how said girl looked at her with those fear stricken eyes, as if expecting to be murdered outright or something.

And then, there were this feelings that were rising up in her, and it puzzled her to no end. She felt as if she had need to...protect her.

But protect her from what? Why did she feel this way for someone she had recently just met. She didn't understand and to honest it was downright scaring her to no end.

Then, for the life of her she couldn't understand, her left hand instinctively proceeded to reach out and push a strand of the girl's hair away from her face and behind her ear.

' _Just what is going here_?' she thought to herself, _'Why do I feel this way. And why do I feel... drawn to her somehow, as if I should know her._ '

She looked at her hand that touched the girl's face before looking back at the said sleeping face of said person.

' _Just who are you..._?'

"Hey, Cereal Girl,"

She turned and saw Qrow standing behind her. The said Huntsman saw the emotions that were on the girl's face, the most prominent being confused and worried. The older man sighed as he placed a hand on the Mistralian's shoulder.

"Listen, go help the others and find something that will be worth bringing back to Beacon. I'll take care of Sleeping Beauty there, alright?" He said, and he saw the reluctance in the girl's face and eyes to do so, before she gave a nod, and stood up and went to help her team and Team RWBY look for anything, while Qrow stood next to bed, and proceeding to pick her up in a cradle carry.

Pyrrha, though was still concerned, knew she had to focus as she proceeded to look around, she heard Ruby gasped and turned to said Prodigy, who had picked up something. The said leader of Team RWBY then turned to her.

"Hey Pyrrha, doesn't this look like your Circlet?" the Rose said as she lifted up, much to Pyrrha's shock and confusion, an exact duplicate of her Circlet that she was wearing. The design, even down to the tear drop shaped emeralds suspended by the thin chains, was spot on. However, one key difference caught her eye...

...the symbol on the forehead of the piece. She looked at it, and blinked. The appearance was that of two crescent arches, like she saw on Jaune's shield, along with a spear, just like on her own emblem, overlapping them.

"Can...Can I see it Ruby?" she asked the young Rose, and Ruby nodded as she handed the piece of jewelry to her. Once she took it into her hands, the unnerved look on her face never left her, as Pyrrha examined it more closely, and saw the almost unnoticeable dings and scratches on it, but aside from those, the circlet looked VERY well taken care of.

Deciding to ask about this to the girl at a later time, Pyrrha proceeded to carefully wrap the circlet in a white cloth she found, before placing it in one of the backpacks they brought with them.

Soon everyone was done, getting what they could, and were now heading for the roof of the palace for the waiting Bullhead. But then...

 _ **"No, don't!**_ "

Everyone stopped as they looked around for the person who shouted.

"What the he- who said that!?" Jaune shouted as he brought out his sword and shield.

" _ **Listen to me!**_ " the voice shouted again, " _ **If you try to leave that way, the IMD will not hesitate to shoot you out of the sky!**_ "

Qrow's eyes squint as he and everyone else look for the source of the voice.

"Alright, whoever you are, come out!" he demanded, but received a sigh in response.

" _ **I'm afraid I don't have a physical body to do that, Mr. Branwen,**_ " the voice replied, making everyone blink in confusion. "If _**you want to know who I am, there is a secret compartment in the back of the armor of the woman you're carrying, just below the neck. Just press your hand to it, but I propose that either Mister Arc or Miss Nikos do it.**_ "

That caused the said two to blink before looking at the said area. Pyrrha decided to do it, as she reached for the spot as Qrow held the girl's back up. When her fingers pressed onto it, a multi-colored light seemed to sweep over her hand, before a beep and a click were revealing said compartment. But it was what was inside the compartment that got their attention.

It was a scroll.

Pyrrha reached out and grabbed the device, as everyone looked at it, while Qrow closed the compartment. Before suddenly a green flash made them jump, as a glowing green, figure half a foot high, appeared from the video recorder of the scroll. To any of them who know much of Atlas' military hardware, the figure had the appearance of an AK-130 Combat Robot, only difference was that it had an anime-style human male face. Everyone was thinking a mile a minute on just what this thing was...with Jaune actually thinking it was a ghost of all things.

Before they question what it was, the figure spoke.

" _ **I'm afraid I have no time for introductions**_ ," it/he said, " _ **But if you all want to survive in the next twenty minutes, you have to follow my instructions. The IMD has dispatched several dropships to this place, and I'm afraid your Bullhead will not be able to outrun him, even if you had a head start.**_ "

The group of students, and one alcoholic huntsman, all gave questioning frowns at that.

"And why would we believe that?" Yang said the one question on everyone's mind, while the figure sighed irritably.

" _ **Look, we don't have a lot of time, Miss Xiao Long**_." he snipped, " _ **My primary concern is the safety of my partner who you apparently have been sent to find and bring back to Beacon under Ozpin's orders. So, unless you don't want to live in the span of the next hour, I suggest you listen to what I have to say in order to survive**_."

The whole group are stunned into silence by this logical, blunt, but sensible answer, until Qrow decided to speak.

"Okay glow boy...," he said, "...what is it you want us to do?"

* * *

The dropships arrive at the palace, as the floodlights on the side illuminated the rooftop of the building where the Bullhead was sitting and waiting. Soon the side hatches opened and the Commandos disembarked onto the roof, and immediately surrounded the transport with two going into the it. However, the pilots along with the teams were not there.

"Sir, there's no one here," said one of the commandos, while the commander's eyes narrowed, before turning to the door on the roof.

"Team One, follow my lead. Team Two, secure this rooftop," he ordered, and the squad complied as half of them went with him, while the other stayed on the roof.

It didn't take them long where they found the room where the Ranger said the MK was staying, noting the opened doors. The Commander signaled the unit to halt, before signing to hug the wall, as they edged closer to the room.

Once they got close, the commander turned to the soldier behind, and signed to prepare a flashbang grenade.

The Commando nodded and did exactly that, pulling a flashbang from his belt, pulled the pin, and threw it into the room. There was a period of two seconds before a loud bang was heard and that was the signal for the Commandos to charge in. But when they went inside, aside from a few equipment, there was no one else here.

The Commander's eyes narrowed, before looking at what was left behind. He could see some electronic weapon and a few weapons cases, and what looked like a small fridge in the corner.

"Secure the room, and gather anything of note to take back to base," he ordered, "Team 2, status report?"

" _Nothing as of- Wait_!" said the officer in charge of the second team, " _Sir, a vehicle just rammed the Palace Compound Gate! It's departing the area!_ "

The Commander cursed at that, "Shit, Falke One and Two! Pursue and stop that vehicle, disable it anyway you can but DO NOT destroy it! I repeat: DO NOT destroy it!"

* * *

A single, black colored van sped through the streets, in a desperate rush to get to it's location. In the vehicle itself, was none other than Qrow, Team JNPR and RWBY, and the two Bullhead pilots.

The one driving the vehicle was Yang, and she gotta admit, this baby was fast! Not as fast as her baby Bumblebee, but faster than any other van!

"Wow! This thing's awesome!" the blonde haired shouted in glee, as she hit the pedal to the metal, "Where the heck did she get this thing!?"

" _ **Let's just say my partner has done a LOT of bounty hunting in Mistral under different aliases in the past few months**_ ," the voice of the A.I. said, " _ **Not mention the modifications she wanted, like the Wasp-99 engine she had installed under the hood.**_ "

Yang's eyes widened in familiarity at the engine name. The Wasp-99 was an engine normally found in racing cars, and it came equipped with a supercharger which sent lightning dust into the engine and sent it up to speeds of up to 350 miles per hour. Of course, it was illegal to have that certain type of engine in ordinary vehicles, but people like street racers didn't care.

Yang smirked as she was beginning to like this girl's style.

"Hey Yang, could you slow down a little bit!?" Qrow shouted from the back, as he, along with everyone else, held on for dear life. Of course, Doré (Whose name they didn't know yet of course), who was still unconscious was being held firmly by Pyrrha, so she wouldn't slam her head against a wall, while Nora was enjoying the bumpy ride. Jaune though...well it's Jaune.

Qrow, unlike his niece, was not as much of a thrillseeker, when it came to riding on extreme speed vehicles. "Not all of us are as crazy as you when it comes to driving!"

"Sorry Qrow!" quipped Yang, smirk still on her face. "Gotta make a fast getaway if we want to get as far away from those IMD nut jobs as possible!"

"I'm NEVER riding with you in a car ever again, Yang!" Weiss shouted, "You're a lunatic driver! And you deserve to have your license revoked!"

"Oh come on! It was just one gate!" Yang retorted.

"And the public bench, and the line of parking meters, and finally the fire hydrant!" Weiss shouted, "Admit it Party Girl! You. Are. CRAZY!"

Yang only giggled as she continued focusing on driving everyone back to Beacon.

But then the sound of chain guns, and the stream of bullets in front of them forced Yang to execute some crazy maneuvers almost making everyone fly about.

"Looks like we got company!" the blonde thrillseeker shouted, and she was right as two IMD dropships were right behind them, as they fired their chain guns trying to hit the tires of the van, though Yang's driving skills didn't make it easy for the pilots.

Qrow looked out the back and saw the said gunships, and he cursed.

"Well that's just perfect," he said sarcastically, and looked back to the front, and looked at the road, and saw a incoming sign. "Turn left at the next turn! It'll take us on the long way back to the school! It'll take a while, and leave us open, but it's better than leading a chase through the city and possibly getting somebody killed!"

"Gotcha!" Yang shouted as she made a sharp turn, with Pyrrha using her semblance to keep herself attached to the wall, while still holding onto the unconscious girl, who then began muttering in her sleep.

"M...Ma...plea...," was what she managed to hear, as the Champion looked at the Maiden Knight's face which was set in a grimace, "don't...go...t-tower,"

Pyrrha couldn't understand what she was saying but the way she whimpering along with perspiration on her brow, it was definitely not good.

The chase continued as the two gunships continued their chase of the van, determined to stop from getting to Beacon. Soon they arrived at the main road, which was a mostly unused dirt road, due to the school using Dust planes and Bullheads, but was still usable, and thanks to the surprising off-road capability.

"Geez! Off-road capabilities too!?" Yang shouted.

" _ **It was meant as an quick escape vehicle, in case our hideout at the Palace was compromised!**_ " the A.I. spoke up, _**"Now it looks like we're using it! Though, I don't think the destination was something she did not have in mind to go to, though**_ "

Qrow quirked an eyebrow at that.

"What's the matter with Beacon?" he asked.

" _ **All I can tell is that my partner has...issues with Professor Ozpin**_ ," causing confusion among the group, " _ **I'll tell you when we reach the Academy, and away from those annoying flies,**_ "

The sudden sound of gunfire got their attention again, as the dropships chasing them were now closing in on them.

"Okay, time to bring them down!" Nora shouted and was about to use Magnhild's grenade launcher mode to shoot down the gunships, only to be stopped by Ren.

"Don't! If you do that, they will be after you, too, Nora," the green ninja said, "They've been hired by the Vale Council to act as security and attacking them will just get you into trouble,"

Nora was reluctant, but then just gave a sigh in defeat.

"No fair...," she whined.

"Don't worry, we're halfway there!" Yang shouted, "Just need to get passed the forest and we're home free!"

A series of pings on the van's roof made half of them doubt that.

"That is if they don't kill us, first!" Jaune shouted.

Qrow gritted his teeth, as she wished a miracle would happen.

* * *

In the cockpit of one of the dropships, the pilot looked at the target reticle, as his index finger just barely grazed the trigger on his joystick.

He smirked as he lined up a shot to one of the tires of the van.

"Now I got you," he uttered, and was ready to squeeze the trigger...

...only for a blue beam of light to suddenly lance out and hit one of the engines of his craft.

"WHAT THE HELL!?"

* * *

Qrow watched in surprise as what could only be described as a laser beam clip one of the IMD dropships, forcing it to veer away, and the following ship to break off pursuit as well.

"Who or what the hell did that?" he questioned to himself, but his question was as quickly answered, as a fast object moving object sped in front of him.

It was moving too fast for him to get a clear view, but he could recognize a fighter jet when he saw one.

"Saved by a damn jet." Qrow sighed, "And I owe whoever's piloting that thing a drink,"

He then turned to the front of the van as he spotted Beacon not too far in the distance.

"And in the nick of time, too,"

* * *

"And you're telling me, a fighter of unknown origin came out of nowhere and shot down one of the dropships you sent in pursuit of the target!?" Blaive said angrily as he received the report from the Commander who he picked to apprehend and bring the MK back to the Erzengel.

 _"Yes sir,_ " said Commando leader said, who appeared quite intimidated, knowing that he failed, " _According to the pilots it was some kind of laser beam. Not anything like Atlas or even ourselves use._ "

The Admiral growled as his grip tightened on the pencil before it snapped in half.

"Anything else to report?" he demanded, hoping there was good news.

" _We managed to recover some computer software from the room that the target was staying in_ ," the Commander reported, " _From the looks of it, sir, she was staying there for quite a while. With any luck we should be able to find out who she is,_ "

Blaive sighed as he massaged the headache he was feeling. It was not much, but it was a start.

"Report back to the _Erzengel_ ," he ordered, "After you deliver the items you found, I want a full report from you and the pilots. Over and out, Commander,"

He ended the transmission, before sighing in irritation.

"Damn Ozpin and his little Children," he growled out, knowing that with the girl now safely behind Beacon's walls, he couldn't touch her, "And now we play the game on who screws up first, you or me,"

For right now, he will wait. Until that idiot Ozpin makes a mistake, he'll do the official job that the Vale Council had hired him to do, provide security for the Vytal Festival, and keep the damn Grimm away from it..

However, his attention then went to the image that one of the dropships managed to take before leaving. It was of a forward swept wing fighter, with looked like a laser cannon on top. However, his focus landed on the symbol on one of it's wings. His eyes squinted slightly, before they widened slightly, before a small smirk formed.

"So...they are still around after all this time, eh?" he said nonchalantly, while chuckling, "Very well then, let's see how the wolf fairs against the dragon, shall we?"

* * *

 _ **Beacon Academy**_

 _ **Team JNPR's Dorm**_

* * *

The two teams were all in Team JNPR Dorm Room, looking over the person who was now resting on one of the beds, Pyrrha's to be specific, as Qrow watched from the doorway.

They had arrived at the school about half an hour ago, and let some of the security staff move what they found in the palace to a place on the grounds where it could be properly looked through. They then brought the said person to Team JNPR's Dorm room as they waited for Professor Ozpin.

Jaune was holding the scroll which was containing Anders as his holographic form looks over his partner.

 _ **"Well, since we're here, even though she will be incensed when she wakes up and finds out, I can deliver the message I was programmed to deliver,**_ " the A.I. said much to the gathered groups surprise.

Qrow raised an eyebrow at that, "What sort of message?" he asked, and the holographic form of the A.I turned to him.

 _ **"Let's just say it concerns the future of ALL of Remnant, with Teams RWBY and JNPR at the center of it,**_ " he said, making everyone eyes widen in shock.

"The future of Remnant?" Pyrrha asked, and Anders nodded.

" _ **Yes, but it would be better that if Professor Ozpin is here, along with all of you since it concerns you all as well,**_ " he said, and just as he said that...speak of the devil and he will come.

The said Headmaster arrived at the doorway to the dorm, along with Professor Goodwitch.

"I hope everyone is alright," Ozpin as he walked in, "When I heard you found, and the possibility of the IMD coming after you-...,"

He stopped as soon as he saw the girl on the bed, more specifically her face, before turning to Pyrrha and back again.

"It appears that I have lot to catch on," he said, while Qrow sighed, as he and Anders both said the same thing regarding the situation.

"No shit/ _ **No Shit**_ ,"

* * *

 _ **A/N : Ugh...not gonna lie, this chapter was a bit of a dozy. Of course, while I have planned these chapters with Jorn, actually writing them is a bit of a challenge, so sorry if they seem off to you. Anyway, I'm gonna take a little bit of a break, then I'll get back on this. My grandparents are out of town and left me in charge of the house, so I need to focus on that.**_

 _ **Also, if you're wondering what the fighter jet that saved Team RWBY/JNPR, and Qrow looks like I'll give you a hint:**_

 _ **This Arthurian character served as the antagonist to Arthur Pendragon, and is his half sibling.**_

 _ **Anyway, here's a new short scene.**_

* * *

Short Scene: Dreams of Despair

She saw nothing but a dark void, as she laid on the floor, curled into a fetal position, listening to the various memories of the two people, whose love she so desperately wanted, but knowing it's impossible.

 _"SAVE HER! Please...save her,"_

 _"Do you believe in Destiny?"_

 _"...Please! Don't do this!"_

 _"...I'm sorry,"_

She wasn't new to these memories, they have haunted her ever since she was born. They were one of the many reasons, why she grew up too soon, and why she never had any parents...well, in her special case that is, they were dead before she was even 'born'.

Still it didn't stop the pain she felt in her heart and soul. In fact, it made it all the more painful, almost to the point of unbearable

"... _Doré_..."

At the sound of her name being called, her eyes snapped open, and she sat herself up and looked around.

After a few moments she sighed and proceeded to return to her original position.

" _Doré_ ,"

She stopped and looked around, again. Searching for the source of the voice.

" _Doré_!"

She scrambled to her feet as she looked around more frantically now.

"Hello!?" she shouted, almost desperately.

" _Doré_!"

The voice, which sounded like a young woman, shouted again, desperately this time.

She knew that voice, it was like her own, but...her eyes widened in hope, as she proceeded to run into the void the, the woman's voice shouting her name over and over, until it was suddenly accompanied by another, this time a young man.

" _Doré_!"

The sounds of her armored boots clicking on the floor echoed in the darkness as she proceeded to call out herself.

"Where are you!?" she screamed out, hoping they would answer back and tell her, "Please, tell me where you are!"

She continued running and calling out, hoping that she will find the voices owners.

She didn't know how long she ran for, but she didn't care as she continued searching.

Soon though, her face was now in a desperate grimace, as tears flowed in despair.

"Please...tell me...anything...please..." she then slowed before finally stopping and collapsed to her knees, sobbing as she reached out the void, hoping that somehow, the people behind the voice will grasp it. But they didn't

Taking a few deep breaths she managed to scream out two words. Ones she really wanted to say.

"MAMA!...PAPA!"

* * *

Doré jolted awake, screaming and her hand raised toward the ceiling. Her emerald green eyes were wide, as she laid still on her bed in the Old Royal Palace.

Before long, her arm quivered before falling and resting over her eyes, the hand clenched into a fist, as the tears flowed from them.

"Dammit...DAMMIT!" she shouted in distraught, as she began to sob into her arm..

"How much more...?" she asked to no one, "How much more must I endure this torture? This...this pain?"

She didn't move from her bed, considering it was still the middle of the night, as she cried at the pain, misery, and torture she had endured for as long as she could remember.

But, unknown to her, she was not the only one suffering from this torment. Two souls, who were betrayed by Destiny, could only watch in regret and grief as the poor girl sobbed away her sorrows, before eventually falling back to sleep.

* * *

 _ **A/N : Annnnnd done! Until then folks, I hope you have a terrific weekend! Later!**_


	5. AN: Recycling the Fic

_**Patriot-112: Hey everyone, yeah, bad news for this fic. Here to tell you, that I'm recycling this fic, due to the new info from Volume 6, and other things. You can find the rewrite in my profile as always, the plot remains the same, but you'll definitely see some major changes. Again, sorry for the inconvenience.**_


	6. Your honest Opinions

_**Patriot-112: This is a message to those reading this fic, and the one intend I replace it with, due to the fact of certain circumstances...**_

 _ **...I only want to ask one question: Do you all REALLY, want me to continue this story? The reason I ask this was because of Azumadofu's review to this. He tells me, that every time I try to redo this fic, in order to make it better, people would lose interest in it. I try to explain my situation and reasons to him, but he keeps dropping one anvil on me after the other. Note that I'm NOT giving up on this, I'm just asking what YOU all think. Regardless of your answers. I'm still gonna keep going, cause like Mounty Oum said, keep going forward.**_

 _ **And also, I left the original Aurea Mors and the second attempt (Reforge) up as lessons to all of you, on how not to write a fic. I also left up my Arkos Child Challenge Forum as a way of seeing how you will all approach it, but so far only a few people have taken notice. I know you all have your own ideas, but this is intended for how you will add your spin to the idea.**_

 _ **If you want to give me your answers, please do so via PM.**_

 _ **Enjoy the rest of your day, and your evening.**_


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